FC Basel and Xherdan Shaqiri gratefully accept the gifts and race towards the championship title

Kasim Adams will soon be 30 years old, has played over 90 Super League games for YB, FC Basel and Servette FC, and has made over 40 appearances in the Bundesliga, as well as some European Cup time, at all levels.

Adams has experience. But what he did in the first half of Servette FC's crucial Super League match at St. Jakob-Park was something of an invitation to FC Basel to win the championship title as quickly as possible and cripple the league at the top.

FC Basel is good, at times masterful, reaching lofty heights after never-believed-possible lows last season. And when the competition stands guard and showers them with memorabilia, everything seems so easy, as if the years of drought and question marks had never happened.

Of course, Xherdan Shaqiri is something like the crucial ingredient in Basel's magic potion. But that doesn't mean you have to pass the ball to him straight away, like the unfortunate Kasim Adams does. He's relatively unchallenged in the 28th minute, hesitates, and, as the last Servette outfield player, plays the fatal cross into Geneva's nowhere. Shaqiri takes over, and, with luck on his side, the ball flies high into the net via goalkeeper Joël Mall – 1-0.

Since Kasim Adams hadn't gambled enough, he also scored Basel's second goal just minutes after going behind. A misplaced pass, no pace, just a view from behind. Shaqiri runs and plays a "sweet little pass" (quoted by Speaker) to Albian Ajeti, who scores to make it 2-0. And so it goes. You're rubbing your eyes the moment Ajeti scores to make it 3-0. There's nothing easier than becoming Swiss champions.

38 minutes played, a festive atmosphere in St. Jakob-Park. Geneva's faint hopes vanish shortly after the break when Alexis Antunes is sent off for a second yellow card. Oh, my goodness, Servette FC, can things get any worse? Kasim Adams gets a tiny dose of satisfaction with a goal. The rest is up to Basel—or Shaqiri.

The number 10, the captain with all eyes on him, brimming with joy, puts on the almost expected show. In the second half, Shaqiri assists two more goals, taking his impressive season tally to 15 goals and 20 crucial assists. Shaqiri, the sizzling hotfoot player with passes rarely seen in this league, doesn't take long to debate who is primarily responsible for Basel's looming success.

After a long dry spell, Albian Ajeti scored his seventh and eighth goals of the season – thanks in part to Shaqiri. Ajeti's confidence was reassured and he described the team's performance and the crowd's performance as "outstanding." Over 32,500 people attended, meaning FC Basel is back in vogue, welcoming over 25,000 fans per match again.

Here, too, he harks back to the past, forgetting the dip in attendance that was noticeable in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic and more modest results. Back then, there were fewer than 22,000. A dip, however, that wasn't particularly deep and, compared to the competition, hardly worth mentioning.

The league kicks off the championship round with a match between first and second, practically challenging the preliminary decision, and FC Basel's lead has already extended to nine points. And this with four rounds to go. This means FCB can become champions as early as next weekend. They play in Lugano on Saturday, while Servette hosts the struggling champions YB on Sunday.

While Basel's premature "champion" chants can be heard outside in the stadium, the Genevans trudge to the locker room with their heads hanging low. Sporting director René Weiler high-fives everyone, shrugs his shoulders, and refuses to say anything to the media, but disappointment is written all over his face. Because he knows what they've beaten. Servette coach Thomas Häberli congratulates his opponents on their victory – and, he thinks, "on their championship too." There's no getting around it.

FCB coach Fabio Celestini, whose future at Basel was cast into doubt by the Basler Zeitung just a few weeks ago, also knows this. But that's no longer being discussed. After the game, Celestini was almost unstoppable, full of endorphins, and said that it was still about "making a dream come true."

There's still one step to go. After the seventh consecutive victory, Celestini says: "The team deserves this." He adds that the young players "fly across the pitch."

Swiss club football would be at Basel's feet if the women's team hadn't missed a place in the play-off final against YB after a heavy and dramatic 4-1 defeat to GC on the same day in a secondary stadium. The FC Basel women received no gifts.