Sweden

www.sweden.com

World Ranking 24

Squad

Team Review

Sweden are not at Euro 2008 just to make up the numbers, and with players like Ibrahimovich and ljundberg in their squad I’m sure they will score goals and in turn win games to make qualification into the knock out rounds a real possibility.

Star Man

Zlatan Ibrahimović, has been playing at his usual brilliant standard all year for both club and country combining skill,

speed and technique plus a lethal eye for goal to make him one of the best strikers in Europe. All Sweden need is to find a suitable partner for him to act as a foil allowing him to do what he does best and score goals.

Also check out who we think will be the 'players to watch' in the tournament

Tournament History

Match Reports

Greece 0 - 2 Sweden

(Ibrahimovic 67, Hansson 73)

The game started well enough with Sweden having the greater possession, but as the game progressed Greece’s tactics allowed the game to slow down and become dare I say it, boring. But then in the 67th minute a piece of individual brilliance lit up the whole stadium as Zlatan Ibrahimovic let rip from outside the area with the ball nearly bursting the net, leaving Greece’s highly experienced goal keeper Nikopolidis with no chance.

The game carried on in as it had began, a sorry spectacle for the football purist but to add a bit of humour to the game the Greeks hap hazard defending landed them in hot water when Sweden’s Hansson bundled the ball between Nikopolidis’s legs after the Greek defence were in all kinds of trouble trying to clear the ball from inside their own penalty area.

All in all this was certainly not a game for the neutral with the only highlight being Ibrahimovic’s wonder strike. Sweden will be very happy with the result, on the other hand I think the reigning champions should be omitted from the tournament for such boring, negative and uninspiring football that was so bad I could barely watch.

Sweden 1 - 2 Spain

(Ibrahimovic 34) (Torres 15, Villa 90)

Spain had lit up the tournament with their first game and were looking to do the same again, but as in every major tournament they failed to deliver a performance like they did against the Russians. They did however go one nil up early on via a goal from the ever talented Torres but 20 minutes later conceded a goal to the mercurial Ibrahimovic who was having quite a good game.  Ibrahimovic then limped off afterward which was in my view, game over for Sweden who although hung on till the dieing minutes fell to a poacher’s goal from the undisputed star of the tournament so far David Villa. That was nearly the last kick of the game leaving Sweden no time to try and get an equaliser.

Russia 2 - 0 Sweden

(Pavlyuchenko 24, Arshavin 50)

This game was the decider in group D and the game didn’t disappoint with the Russians in a mood which saw them play relentless attacking football with Arshavin being the catalyst for all of it. It took the Russian just 24 minutes to carve open the Swedish defence who at times looked static and Pavlyuchenko provided a smart finish.

The rampant Russians carried on there assault outplaying the Swedes in nearly every area of the pitch making themselves a few more chances before halftime but couldn’t convert. In the second half it only took 5 minutes for Arshavin to double their lead with a well taken sliding effort after team mate Zhirkov laid the ball off.

The Russians came close a number of times afterward but didn’t make their chances pay and it ended 2-0, it could have been a lot more.