Granit Xhaka and Xherdan Shaqiri have, thankfully, avoided match suspensions with FIFA ruling that their controversial “double eagle” hand gestures during their respective goals versus Serbia last week did not cross a threshold meriting such a severe punishment, but the pair - along with Swiss defender and new Arsenal signing Stephan Lichtsteiner - have been fined by the world football governing body 10,000 Swiss francs, or $10,129 (Lichtsteiner received a smaller fine, in the amount of 5,000 Swiss francs, or $5,064). As noted yesterday, Xhaka and Shaqiri are both ethnic Albanians, whose families were persecuted and driven out of their homelands by Serbian forces during the bloody Kosovo War in the 1990’s. During warm-ups, player introductions, and during the match, Xhaka and Shaqiri were booed and whistled by segments of the Serbian fans in attendance - some of which, again, were wearing photos of convicted Bosnian Serb war criminal Ratko Mladic: Serbian fans wearing convicted war criminal and genocidal maniac Ratko Mladic shirts at the World Cup last night. pic.twitter.com/wTTISgjMWK — CJ Werleman (@cjwerleman) June 23, 2018 Given the atmosphere and the fact that politics were brought, rudely, to them, it stands to reason that Xhaka and Shaqiri felt the need to remind their tormentors that they’re proud of who they are through the simple act of a goal celebration. And FIFA, somehow, allowed them to continue their World Cup pursuits with Switzerland with only a gentle slap on the wrist. Also, related: Arsenal fans will probably enjoy having Stephan Lichtsteiner around. If there’s any knowledge and insight to be gained from Switzerland’s first two World Cup matches, it’s that this guy, who is talented on the pitch, mind, might literally be a maniac who will bring an edge to the team that’s sorely been lacking for years. That he jumped right in to help defend his teammates, while also being an incredible pain in the ass to his opponents and officials, speaks volumes to how he’s going to be with Arsenal. This could get really fun this upcoming season...<doc-sep>Switzerland’s Granit Xhaka and Xherdan Shaqiri have escaped a ban following their controversial celebrations in the 2-1 World Cup win over Serbia last Friday. The pair could have faced two-match bans if Fifa had decided their celebrations broke rules on political and offensive messages. Xhaka and Shaqiri scored in the Group E match and were then charged after they celebrated by putting their hands together to form a double-headed eagle, similar to the one on the Albanian flag. This nationalist symbol risked inflaming tensions in the Balkans among Serbians – who do not recognise Kosovo’s independence – and ethnic Albanians. Stoke City’s Shaqiri was born in Kosovo and the Arsenal midfielder Xhaka was born to Albanian parents who were from Kosovo. Xhaka’s father was a political prisoner following the 1986 student demonstrations in Yugoslavia against the communist government in Belgrade. Xhaka’s brother Taulant plays for Albania’s national side. The Football Association of Serbia (FSS) had revealed it would complain to Fifa about Shaqiri’s boots – which bear the flag of Kosovo – and the display of “several controversial flags” during Friday night’s match in Kaliningrad. The Fiver: sign up and get our daily football email. However, a statement from Fifa on Monday confirmed that Xhaka and Shaqiri had been fined 10,000 Swiss francs (£7,632) each and Stephan Lichtsteiner 5,000 Swiss francs (£3,816), with all three also given warnings, having “infringed the Fifa disciplinary code for unsporting behaviour contrary to the principles of fair play.”<doc-sep>The pair are in hot water after their nationalist symbols caused a lot of extra tension in Switzerland's clash with Serbia Everyone’s talking about the heroics of Xherdan Shaqiri and Granit Xhaka after Friday’s World Cup clash between Switzerland and Serbia. The pair helped the Swiss come from one goal down to beat their Group E rivals 2-1, with Xhaka netting a lovely long-range strike just after half-time, while Shaqiri ran from the half-way line to slot home the late winner. With that, Switzerland are more-or-less through to the last 16 of the World Cup. Reuters 5 Big moment But instead of discussing the quality of the game, everyone’s been talking about the controversial and politically motivated hand-symbols the pair made during their goal celebrations. Apparently, it’s upset a few people and could land them both in hot water. So, what’s it all about? You might already know that there’s a few players in Switzerland’s national team with Albanian roots, including Shaqiri, Xhaka and former Watford star Valon Behrami. In fact, Shaqiri was born in Kosovo – the former Serbian province that declared independence in 2008 – to Kosovar-Albanian parents, but grew up in Switzerland. Xhaka also has Albanian parents, but was born in Basel. However, his father was once imprisoned by the Yugoslavian government for campaigning for Kosovo independence. AP:Associated Press 5 Last 16-bound There’s plenty of tension between Kosovo’s Albanian and Serbian communities – with Serbia refusing to recognise Kosovo’s new-found independence. But Shaqiri and Xhaka are openly proud of their Albanian heritage, with the Stoke winger even going as far as sporting the Kosovo flag on his right boot in last night’s match. It added a little extra spice to the game, we’ll tell you that. AP:Associated Press 5 The offending articles Naturally then, both players scored and each displayed a Albanian nationalist symbol in their goal-celebations. Apparently, the thumbs represent the heads of two eagles while the fingers represent feathers, in homage to Albania’s national flag. Granit Xhaka's father, an Albanian, was a political prisoner in #SRB in the 1980s. The celebration tonight? A double eagle – that of the Albanian flag. 🇦🇱 📻📲 https://t.co/erIySsYSdE #worldcup #bbcworldcup #SRBSUI pic.twitter.com/9orWSSBR6b — BBC 5 live Sport (@5liveSport) June 22, 2018 As you’d probably expect, the pair could face punishment from FIFA if their celebrations are deemed to be displays of political symbols. Speaking after the match, Shaqiri said the celebration was simply down to emotion, saying: “I think in football you have always emotions. “You can see what I did and I think it’s just emotion. I’m very happy to score this goal. It’s not more. I think we don’t have to speak about this now.”<doc-sep>
FIFA has opened disciplinary proceedings against Switzerland's Granit Xhaka and Xherdan Shaqiri following their controversial goal celebrations in the 2-1 win over Serbia on Friday. Arsenal's Xhaka and Shaqiri of Stoke - who are of Albanian-Kosovan heritage - celebrated their goals in the World Cup Group E win by putting their hands together to form a double-headed eagle, representative of the one on the Albanian flag. The nationalist symbol risked inflaming tensions in the Balkans among Serbians - who do not recognise Kosovo's independence - and ethnic Albanians. "The FIFA Disciplinary Committee has opened disciplinary proceedings against the Swiss players Granit Xhaka and Xherdan Shaqiri for their goal celebration during the match Switzerland vs. Serbia," FIFA said in an official statement. "In relation to the same match, disciplinary proceedings have been opened against the Serbian FA for crowd disturbance and the display of political and offensive messages by Serbian fans. "Furthermore, a preliminary investigation has been opened against the coach of the Serbian national team Mladen Krstajic for alleged statements made in the aftermath of the said match." Stoke midfielder Shaqiri was born in Kosovo, while Xhaka was born to Albanian parents who were originally from Serbia. His father was a political prisoner following the 1968 student demonstrations in Yugoslavia against the communist government in Belgrade. Xhaka's brother Taulant plays for Albania's national side. Image: Granit Xhaka is also facing a FIFA investigation Meanwhile, the FIFA Disciplinary Committee has also sanctioned the Polish Football Association with a fine of £7600 after fans displayed a political and offensive banner during the match against Senegal. The Argentinian FA and Croatia FA have also had disciplinary proceedings opened against them after crowd disturbances during their game in Nizhny Novgorod on Thursday, which Croatia won 3-0.