php7-match.php

<?php

/**
 * A php 8 like match expression for php 7
 *
 * @param $value
 * @param array $expressionArray
 * @return mixed
 * @throws Exception
 */
function matchExpression($value, array $expressionArray) {
    // Check if value exists in the keys of the expression array
    if (array_key_exists($value, $expressionArray)) {
        // If the corresponding value is a closure, execute it
        if (is_callable($expressionArray[$value])) {
            return $expressionArray[$value]();
        } else {
            // Otherwise, return the corresponding value
            return $expressionArray[$value];
        }
    } elseif (array_key_exists('default', $expressionArray)) {
        // If 'default' key exists, check if its value is a closure
        if (is_callable($expressionArray['default'])) {
            return $expressionArray['default']();
        } else {
            // Otherwise, return its value
            return $expressionArray['default'];
        }
    } else {
        // If the key doesn't exist and no 'default' is provided, throw an exception
        throw new Exception("Match expression not found for the provided value");
    }
}

Simply call it like:

$food = 'cake';

$match = matchExpression($food, [
    'apple' => 'This food is an apple',
    'bar' => 'This food is a bar',
    'cake' => function() { return 'This food is a cake'; },
    'default' => function() { return 'This is an unknown food'; },
]);