Sweden are the best ranked crew going into Euro 2022 and are among the many favourites to go residence with the trophy on the finish of July.
With back-to-back Olympic silver medals, a 3rd place end on the 2019 World Cup and a settled squad stuffed with skilled, defensively sturdy and tactically sensible gamers, the Swedes have a lot going of their favour.
However having so typically fallen on the ultimate or penultimate hurdle, will they recover from the road this time? Here is the whole lot you must learn about Sweden forward of Euro 2022.
Sweden secured their place at Euro 2022 by profitable Group F forward of Iceland.
The Swedes dropped solely two factors from their eight video games, drawing 1-1 with Iceland in Reykjavik halfway by way of the marketing campaign. They typically cruised their approach by way of, profitable by 5 or extra objectives towards Hungary residence and away, Slovakia residence and away and Latvia at residence.
Anna Anvegaard and Lina Hurtig scored 5 and 4 objectives respectively, however defenders Linda Sembrant and Magdalena Eriksson additionally chipped in with 4 and three objectives respectively. However Sweden’s greatest power was defensively, conceding solely twice in eight video games.
Sweden gained the primary ever Girls’s European Championship again in 1984, nevertheless it stays their solely main event triumph so far, regardless of usually being a real contender.
Euro 1984: Winners
Euro 1987: Runners up
Euro 1989: Third place
Euro 1991: Didn’t qualify
Euro 1993: Didn’t qualify
Euro 1995: Runners up
Euro 1997: Semi finals
Euro 2001: Runners up
Euro 2005: Semi finals
Euro 2009: Quarter finals
Euro 2013: Semi finals
Euro 2017: Quarter finals
Sweden have been to each Girls’s World Cup, reaching the ultimate as soon as in 2003 and getting so far as the semi-finals on three different events. Solely as soon as have they failed to succeed in the knockouts.
1991 World Cup: Third place
1995 World Cup: Quarter finals
1999 World Cup: Quarter finals
2003 World Cup: Runners up
2007 World Cup: Group stage
2011 World Cup: Third place
2015 World Cup: Spherical of 16
2019 World Cup: Third place
Loads of Swedish hopes this summer time can be pinned on the shoulders of versatile Barcelona ahead Fridolina Rolfo. The left-sided star, who moved from Wolfsburg final summer time, completed the membership season in a full-back function however is predicted to be one of many high attackers at Euro 2022.
Rolfo chipped in with 9 objectives and 10 assists in 26 league appearances for Barcelona final time period, She has been a part of Sweden’s two silver medal-winning Olympics squads – netting three objectives in Tokyo final summer time – and at 28 is at her peak.
Control 19-year-old Hanna Bennison, who’s the one participant within the Sweden squad youthful than 24. Regardless of her age, the Everton midfielder already has a robust quantity of senior worldwide expertise – she extra caps below her belt than a number of older members, and can convey aptitude, intelligence and creativity to the event.
Peter Gerhardsson has been Sweden coach since 2017, masterminding final summer time’s journey to the Olympic ultimate and spectacular opening victory over the USA,
The 62-year-old was working in males’s soccer earlier than that, having been in cost at Hacken for seven years till 2017. Since 2002 he has additionally been Below-17 males’s nationwide coach and an assistant coach at Helsingborg.
Sweden’s teenage midfielder Hanna Bennison was the costliest feminine participant on this planet in 2021, costing Everton a ‘six determine’ sum when she made the change from Rosengard within the autumn.
Netherlands vs Sweden
Date & time: Saturday 9 July, 20:00 (BST)
Venue: Bramall Lane
The right way to watch on TV: BBC One (UK)
Sweden vs Switzerland
Date & time: Wednesday 13 July, 17:00 (BST)
Venue: Bramall Lane
The right way to watch on TV: BBC Two (UK)
Sweden vs Portugal
Date & time: Sunday 17 July, 17:00 (BST)
Venue: Leigh Sports activities Village
The right way to watch on TV: BBC iPlayer (UK)
Sweden shouldn’t have any bother getting by way of the group stage, with wins over Switzerland and Portugal to be anticipated. However they’ll have a harder time towards reigning champions Netherlands and their opening conflict towards them may decide who finishes high of the standings.
Topping the group would arrange a quarter-final with the runner up of Group D, which is more likely to be Italy or Iceland. The semi-final on that aspect is the winner of Group A or the Group B runner up, which is predicted to be England, Germany or Spain.
Ending as Group C runner up would imply 1 / 4 ultimate towards Group D’s winner, probably France. After that, it could be a semi-final towards the runner up for Group A or the Group B winner; probably Norway, Spain or Germany.
Goalkeepers: Hedvig Lindahl (Atletico Madrid), Jennifer Falk (Hacken), Zecira Musovic (Chelsea).
Defenders: Jonna Andersson (Hammarby), Linda Sembrant (Juventus), Hanna Glas (Bayern Munich), Amanda Nilden (Juventus), Magdalena Eriksson (Chelsea), Emma Kullberg (Brighton), Amanda Ilestedt (PSG), Nathalie Bjorn (Everton).
Midfielders: Filippa Angeldahl (Man Metropolis), Caroline Seger (Rosengard), Hanna Bennison (Everton), Elin Rubensson (Hacken), Olivia Schough (Rosengard).
Forwards: Lina Hurtig (Juventus), Kosovare Asllani (Actual Madrid), Sofia Jakobsson (San Diego Wave), Stina Blackstenius (Arsenal), Rebecka Blomqvist (Wolfsburg), Fridolina Rolfo (Barcelona), Johanna Rytting Kaneryd (Hacken).
Sweden have been the ‘practically’ crew on so many events over the past 35 years, however 2022 can be when that lastly all modifications they usually get their fingers on a primary main trophy since 1984.
They’ve been Europe’s highest ranked crew by FIFA for a while and that is an skilled squad at its peak – glory for them is now or by no means.
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