It's Sweden that must win when the European Championship qualifying round in football concludes with a completely decisive match at Gamla Ullevi.
Great advantage England? Not necessarily.
They know they'll make it with a draw and it's not always the easiest, says Sweden's national team captain Peter Gerhardsson.
The loss away against France on Friday, while England beat Ireland, means that the following applies before the European Championship qualifying round's final round:
Sweden needs to win at home against England in Gothenburg on Tuesday to take the second direct spot to the European Championship 2025 behind already qualified France. Otherwise, they'll face a playoff in the fall.
It's going to be fantastically fun, completely sold out, completely decisive. If we win, we're in the European Championship, says Peter Gerhardsson about the upcoming match at Gamla Ullevi.
Rested key players
The Swedish national team captain chose to rest several regular players against France. Like Magdalena Eriksson and Kosovare Asllani, who both risked suspension with another yellow card. Maybe Sweden would have won otherwise? Maybe it was the right decision?
The Swedish players are leaning towards the latter.
It's clear that it's important to be able to have all players available for a decisive match. It was nice not to get any more warnings, we have a full squad going into the next match, says midfielder Filippa Angeldahl.
It's the most positive thing, that we didn't get any yellow cards and that everyone can be available against England. That's the most important thing, says Chelsea player Johanna Rytting Kaneryd.
Sees great opportunities
It's not even given that England's situation provides a greater advantage, says Peter Gerhardsson. While Sweden knows they need to push forward, England is forced to find a balance between defending a draw without backing off too much.
England knows they'll make it with a draw and from my experience, it's not always easy to know what to do then, says Gerhardsson.
Johanna Rytting Kaneryd is well acquainted with Tuesday's opponents, which largely consist of teammates and opponents from the English top league. And she has high hopes that Sweden will secure a European Championship spot through a win in front of a sold-out Gamla Ullevi.
I see extremely great opportunities. We played a good match last time against them (1–1 in London in April). It's important to get a good start. If we can get that and hold together as a team, we know we can threaten them in depth. There are great opportunities there, says Rytting Kaneryd.
The top two teams go directly to the European Championship in Switzerland 2025. The third and fourth teams are forced to play a playoff in the fall. To qualify for the European Championship through the playoff, two double wins are required.
France is already qualified, Sweden and England are fighting for the second direct spot in a completely decisive match on Tuesday. If Sweden wins, the spot is theirs, otherwise England goes to the European Championship.
The standings in Sweden's group after five of six rounds:
- France, 12 points (+3 in goal difference), 2) England, 10 points (+3), 3) Sweden, 7 points (+2), 4) Ireland, 0 points (–8).
Final round:
July 16: Sweden–England (19.00, Gamla Ullevi), Ireland–France (19.00).
