England minus Rooney vs Sweden plus Ibrahimovic
England will face a Swede side craving for victory following that 2-1 upset against Ukraine. A second loss on the trot at Euro 2012 and Sweden will follow Ireland to the gates of doom. Captain Zlatan Ibrahimovic is aware of that. His ego seems big enough for fans to expect him to react in the England game.
Against Ukraine, the veteran striker played his part by breaking the deadlock early in the second half. However, two stunning moments at the other end of the field saw him lose a personal duel against Andriy Shevchenko.
Thankfully for Ibrahimovic, England will be without Wayne Rooney in Friday’s match. This could be the Milan forward’s chance to teach young Danny Welbeck and company a lesson or two. Sweden defender Martin Olsson who has faith in his team’s captain gave a warning to the Three Lions, stating:
“If Ibrahimovic is in the right mood, anything can happen. Sometimes he doesn't touch the ball in 20 to 30 minutes and then he suddenly explodes. Hopefully it will happen against England as well.”
England captain Steven Gerrad does not underestimate the capabilities of Ibrahimovic. Gerrard knows that the AC Milan striker’s shoulders are strong enough to produce a one-man show and revive Sweden’s hope at UEFA Euro 2012.
“Ibrahimovic is a world-class talent and he is very dangerous so we need the same level of commitment defensively to try and stop him,” Gerrard told FIFA.com.
“If you give him time and space, he can hurt any team and we are well aware of him.”
In fact, there are several reasons for England to be wary of the Scandinavians ahead of Friday’s crucial encounter at UEFA Euro 2012. Aside the Ibrahimovic factor, one of those reasons is that the Three Lion have not beaten the Blagult in a competitive fixture since 1968.
Tactically, England may need to gather more possession against Sweden than they did against France. Midfielder Rasmus Elm is confident that the Swedes will make better use of the ball on Friday. Comparing the Ukraine game to the upcoming one, Elm told the press:
“I think when we tried to force it we showed we are a good team, making good chances against a good team also. If we play like we played in the first half, it’s going to be difficult to be almost any team.”
According to manager Roy Hodgson, “France posed a lot of threats from their set-plays and Sweden will be the same.”
At the end of the day, in which situation will England and Sweden find themselves?
Find out where to watch Sweden vs England and keep following the tournament on our UEFA Euro 2012 page.
Ukraine a win away from a historic Last 8 qualification
By the time Sweden vs England gets underway, UEFA Euro 2012 co-hosts Ukraine could be confirmed quarter-finalists. However, this seems easily said than done. Beating a French side that is on a long unbeaten streak is a difficult thing to do for any team.
“If Mr Blanc said France are just outsiders, I think he's lying a little bit because they have lots of great players and youngsters,” Ukraine’s coach told the press on Thursday.
The euphoria is high among Ukrainian football fans but coach Blokhin is mindful that there is more work to do in order to seal a historic qualification into the quarter-finals.
“We won the game [against Sweden] but we've forgotten about it. We still have two games ahead. One win is not enough to qualify.”
The spotlight will be on hero Andriy Shevchenko whom Oleh Blokhin described as a “normal person” to tone down the fever and expectations surrounding the player. Having faced Sheva a number of times during his playing career, France manager Laurent Blanc is well-placed to advice his players on how to contain the Ukrainian skipper. Speaking at the pre-match press conference, Blanc declared:
“It’s up to us to be aware of his threat but Ukraine is a whole side and we must not focus just on Shevchenko. We know he likes to get on the opposite shoulder of the defender and is always in the right place at the right time.
“Great players show up at the big tournament and he’s doing that even at his age. Our players need to be close to him and not as they were for the goal England scored against us.”
Meanwhile, Franck Ribery and Karim Benzema are both expected to live up to expectations after showing flashes of greatness against England. France have a single point in Group D and they are hoping to get in the groove quickly as goalkeeper Hugo Lloris stated:
“It’s going to be very tough [on Friday]. Playing the hosts in front of their home crowd is always tricky, and the Ukrainians have a good team. I’m confident, though, because of how we fought back against England. We showed a lot of character, which is something that can take you a long way.”
