SWEDEN
VS
ENGLAND
7th July 2018 Samara Arena
SWEDEN
Not many people predicted that Sweden and England will meet in the 1/4 Finals. Sweden is one of the best-organized team in the tournament! In 3 of their 4 games, they keep a clean sheet and only Germany managed to score against them and if it hadn't been for Toni Kroos' last-minute free-kick goal, Sweden would be undefeated. In every single game, they showed that they are a well-balanced team who can surprise you from any position. Their last win in the group stage against Mexico was more than impressive and the match against Switzerland they showed that they will not let anybody make a shot against Olsen( Switzerland had their best chance in the over time). Sweden has kept a clean sheet in 5 of their last 6 matches in FIFA World Cup and they are ready to repeat their performance from 1994 when they reached the semifinals.
ENGLAND
The English outplayed Colombia for 90 minutes only to give up a match-tying goal in the overtime(the goal came from the only corner kick the Colombians got for the whole game). Now after the big favourites are gone- Brazil, Germany, Spain, Argentina etc.- England has the rarest chance to reach the final and who knows maybe finally win it. England does have a more talented starting XI then Sweden and many of the English players have played in similar high-profile matches previously. This year's Three Lions team isn't like ones from the past that failed at every corner. Gareth Southgate has instilled a new mindset and his young team is producing. The most important player is their captain- Harry Kane who is the favourite to win the golden boot. The Three Lions are undefeated in 14 of their last 15 matches in FIFA World Cup. England is starting to believe they can make the final even if the majority of the nation doesn't yet.
PREDICTION
The Battle of the North! This is probably the best name to describe this clash! They faced each other 2 times before in the World Cup and both games finished draw(1-1 and 2-2), the last 2 games between them finished with a lot of goals from both sides- 4:2 and 2:3 (1 win for both teams). Could we see another goal show between them? Probably not! We expect a very tactical game and a huge pressure in the middle. England has faster players on the wings and they will try to organize more attacks from there, in a meanwhile Sweden will depend on Forsberg and Ekdal to help Berg and Toivonen to surprise the defence of the Queen's favourites. Harry Kane and Andreas Granqvist will have an epic battle between them and we think the English Captain will find a way to prevail. Definitely, we will see a lot of fouls and a lot of free-kicks in the game. The cards in the game will be a problem because a lot of players are already booked and they will be in danger to miss the next game. England does not have a great record against Sweden in competitive matches, only winning one of the last eight games. This is the best draw England could have hoped for. They are so close to the World Cup semi-finals and have to take advantage.
England to win (3 points at 1.87)
First-half draw (2 points at 1.9)
Harry Kane to score (2 points at 2.05)
Man of the match Harry Kane (2 points at 2.75)
Correct score: 1-2 (1 point at 10)
GOOD LUCK!
ENJOY THE GAME!