shout. Dazzling white background, favoritism moved to the opponent.
When Sweden and England tread on Bramall Lane, only one thing is important:
Who is responsible for the genius.
In the pouring rain outside the Leigh Sports Arena, Hedvig Lindahl was responsible for the evening’s most unexpected performance.
It was about an hour after the final whistle in Belgium, the team that wanted to win but not on their own initiative.
Certainly, Sweden’s efficiency left more to be desired in terms of the end result itself. Statistically speaking, however, the numbers were overwhelming, with an average expected target (xG) of 3.55 versus the modest 0.11 for Red Flames.
“Now we’re home,” Lyndall said convinced convincingly behind a mouthguard as moisture found its way into the skin of both players and media outlets.
home plane? When is England on the other side?
If we now grasp the straw before the semi-finals, that can also be accommodated.
Weak support for England in the North
Many colleagues are intrigued by how little EC fever feels in Chester, where most Swedish journalists live.
There is certainly some difference in attitude towards the “three lions” versus its female counterpart, but the higher the country you go to, the cooler England will be loved among the locals.
Liverpool, which is a short drive from Chester, has a particularly strained relationship with the Empire based on feelings of injustice and neglect by the state. In July 2021, local newspaper Liverpool Echo conducted a poll of its readers that indicated that only half of them supported the England men’s national team during the European Championship.
Sweden played two of their three group stage matches at Bramall Lane in Sheffield, another venue in the north. On Tuesday evening, the stands will be lit with yellow-blue dots on a chalky white background.
Hopefully the support will be greater than expected.
Great feeling at the tips of the fingers
With the same strength as the hosts Sarina Wegmann who have been under pressure in this tournament, the match is far from lost beforehand.
The Dutchman has made 11 identical starts against all opponents so far. Often with a successful outcome, final adjustments were required before a victory over Spain was guaranteed.
Like the defensive-minded Alex Greenwood’s throw to attack left-back Rachel Daley while England were chasing goals. Which proved to be a successful move as it suddenly pushed center back Millie Bright and overpowered the Spanish players.
Federation captain Peter Gerhardsson was in the Netherlands in 2017 when Wegmann led the then-hosts to gold at the European Championships. He was open that football thinking in the country and the basic principles on the field became a great source of inspiration.
As much as the semi-final match will be a classic battle between two notable teams (as well as a family feud for me), it’s possible that Gerhardsson and Wegmann’s personal duel will decide the outcome.
Oppa is ours!
The Swedish national team is very skilled in planning the match. Mark Parsons was so baffled by Blue & Yellow’s flexible 3-4-3 that the Netherlands needed a full half to get into their first group game in earnest.
The decision to allow right-back Amanda Illestit to freely fill the box, sometimes at the expense of a winger, was a stroke of genius against Belgium (goalkeeper Nikki Everard was handed Vaseline stained hands).
Having said that, Sarina Wiegman’s ability to correct during an ongoing match was a bit more evident.
The Three Lionesses are said to play ABBA at high volumes after all of their victories. In fact, the entire English population gets especially excited every time a Swedish pop band makes their speeches.
The majority of the stands will not return to Sweden on Tuesday, despite the place in the north. Nepotism shifted to the host country.
After all, it doesn’t have to be anything negative. ABBA is Swedish music, and Bramall Lane will likely be the Swedish arena at EC 2022.
A little more – ordinary balls – in the net and match training than that of the opponent, and this national team has a good chance of reaching the final at Wembley.
