England have made it to the quarter-finals of the World Cup – but just how tough will Sweden be in the next round?
Sweden defeated Switzerland 1-0 on Tuesday, ahead of England’s dramatic penalty shootout win over Colombia, and the teams will now face off in Samara on Saturday afternoon for a place in the semi-finals.
Here we take a closer look at the Swedish side and the threat they pose…
Sweden
Formation: 4-4-2
Danger man: Emil Forsberg. Sweden’s match-winner against Switzerland was the best player on the pitch in Saint Petersburg – and the number 10, his country’s top creator, will be one England must keep a close eye on in Samara.
His goal against Switzerland – his first at Russia 2018 – came courtesy of a big deflection but his ability to make a yard of space for himself on the edge of the box created the opportunity.
Coming in from the left flank, the RB Leipzig midfielder has excellent close control, and is renowned for dribbling away from his markers. He can pick a pass too, and made more assists than any other player in the Bundesliga in 2016/17.
Forsberg is also Sweden’s set-piece specialist and will relish the chance to go for goal should his team be awarded a free-kick around the England penalty area.
Strength: Unity. When Zlatan Ibrahimovic retired from international football there were questions – not least those posed by the striker himself – about how Sweden would cope without their talisman. But without their star man, Sweden have become closer as a unit and it is now their team ethic at the heart of their success.
The players are committed to the structure put in place by manager Janne Andersson and the boss himself summed up the environment in the camp when he praised everyone from players to technical staff after their 3-0 group stage win over Mexico. Three clean sheets in four matches underlines their organisation and discipline – although they will be without suspended defender Mikael Lustig against England.
Weakness: Goal scoring. Sweden’s winner against Switzerland came with the help of a huge deflection and they rarely looked like finding the net any other way. At times the finishing was awful, with Marcus Berg and Albin Ekdal, twice, wasting great chances to break the deadlock in the first half.
They did put three past an already qualified Mexico in their final group game – albeit with one penalty and one own goal – but also required a spot-kick to see off South Korea in their World Cup opener.
It’s a contrast to Sweden’s qualifying campaign, when they significantly outscored group rivals France, but, although Sebastian Larsson will return for their quarter-final after being banned against Switzerland and will add some creativity, set-pieces are likely to be their best chance of hurting England.
Also See:
Sourse: skysports.com
