Confirmed Starting Line ups : [spacer height=”30px”]
#SWEENG // TEAM NEWS
Here are your Starting XIs, #SWE and #ENG fans! #WorldCup pic.twitter.com/f0lrHTYfh9
— FIFA World Cup (@FIFAWorldCup) July 7, 2018
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England XI vs Sweden: Pickford, Maguire, Stones, Walker, Trippier, Young, Henderson, Alli, Lingard, Sterling, Kane.
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Head to Head
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This will be the 25th meeting between these sides. England have won eight to Sweden’s seven, with nine draws. Both of the previous World Cup meetings between Sweden and England have finished level, with a 1-1 draw in 2002 and a 2-2 in 2006 (both in the group stages). Sweden could become the third team that England have beaten at both the World Cup and European Championships, after Germany and Switzerland.[spacer height=”30px”]
Sweden[spacer height=”30px”]
“England are favourites, yes, of course they are but we don’t mind,” Sebastian Larsson told Sky Sports News. “We still put pressure on ourselves; we don’t feel like our story is finished here.”[spacer height=”30px”]
Being the underdog can work wonders at a major tournament. Lose and you head home as heroes. Win and you head home as heroes. Sweden will be secretly relishing that tag knowing they have much more to offer. The Blågult have never reached a World Cup semi-final before, but Costa Rica, Ghana and Iceland have shown that international football can be kind if things fall in your favour. They’ll be hoping to cause an England collapse in Samara.[spacer height=”30px”]
The key player – Emil Forsberg[spacer height=”30px”]
The star of Sweden is very much the same at RB Leipzig. Within one season, he went from a nobody to a fixture in the Bundesliga. A whole host of big names have been vying for his signature ever since, with Arsenal thought to be the most likely to land the striker.[spacer height=”30px”]
The 26-year-old, in the absence of Zlatan, is their new talisman and will have to be on form if Sweden are to qualify from their group.[spacer height=”30px”]
The young player to watch out for- Victor Lindelöf[spacer height=”30px”]
It’s been a season to forget for Lindelöf at Manchester United. But despite being in-and-out of the team, the 23-year-old is considered a future star by everyone at Old Trafford. Fast, hard in the tackle and with a great reading of the game, this centre back can use Russia as a place to put two fingers up to the world.[spacer height=”30px”]
Predicted Lineup[spacer height=”30px”]
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England[spacer height=”30px”]
Oh, England. We’ve been here before. Going into a massive international game as favourites only for disaster to strike shortly after. Romania in 2000, Northern Ireland in 2005, Iceland in 2014 – the precedent has been set for another embarrassment on football’s biggest stage. But it feels different this time. Buoyed by crumbling the penalty curse against Colombia, confidence amongst the group won’t have been higher with a semi-final in sight.[spacer height=”30px”]
The key player – Harry Kane[spacer height=”30px”]
A genuinely world-class goalscorer and one of the few players in this England squad you could consider ‘world class’. Harry Kane will captain this team and will need to be at his absolute best if the Three Lions are to do anything in this tournament. The first thing to do will be to take him off corners. He is currently the top scorer in the World Cup and tops the race for the golden shoe with 6 goals.[spacer height=”30px”]
The young player to watch out for – Eric Dier[spacer height=”30px”]
Not one of the biggest names in the squad, but Eric Dier is definitely one of the most trusted. The Tottenham man has played in 13 of Gareth Southgate’s 16 matches as England manager and will be a vital cog in Russia.
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Predicted Lineup[spacer height=”30px”]
[spacer height=”30px”]Injury News[spacer height=”30px”]
A groin injury restricted Jamie Vardy to a warm-up with his England team-mates ahead of their World Cup quarter-final against Sweden.[spacer height=”30px”]
Prediction[spacer height=”30px”]
England are favourites and are expected to secure the win by 2-0.They may face Croatia in the semi-finals.[spacer height=”30px”]
