Zlatan Ibrahimovic said that a World Cup without him is not worth watching but his statement certainly has to be reviewed following Sweden’s 2-0 loss to Belgium in a friendly match last Sunday.
The PSG striker was an unused substitute so he had to watch from the bench as his team mates failed to contain the Belgians or score a single goal on home soil. Romelu Lukaku, fresh from netting a hat-trick against Luxembourg, followed up on his goal scoring form with a long range strike after 34 minutes.
Swedish goalkeeper Andreas Isaksson made fine saves all night long but he was humiliated 12 minutes from the end as Chelsea forward Eden Hazard completed a calculated run with an explosive goal. Isaksson didn’t even move.
If Belgium can take their excellent warm-up form to Brazil, expect them to upset some big boys. A FIFA World Cup without them would lack the touch of dangerous underdogs. Meanwhile, Ibra and his national team colleagues will have to follow the tournament as spectators after falling to Portugal in the European World Cup qualifying play-offs back in November 2013.
Sweden 0-2 Belgium: Lukak-GOAL and Hazard’s icing on the cake
