Preview for Sweden v England
England’s defence of their European Championship title faces one other stiff examination tomorrow night time after they tackle in-form Sweden in Zurich.
Sarina Wiegman’s aspect overcame a sticky begin to end second in Group D and can now meet the Group C winners, who come into the sport on the again of a 4-1 thrashing of Germany.
The Lionesses regained their mojo following a sub-standard efficiency and 2-1 defeat to France of their opening recreation in Switzerland with spectacular back-to-back wins over the Netherlands (4-1) and Wales (6-1) to progress, however the Swedes are more likely to pose greater issues.
England midfielder Ella Toone raised the stakes additional by declaring their last-eight opponents ought to be “scared”, feedback which have raised eyebrows within the Sweden camp.
Defender Magdalena Eriksson stated: “Completely not scared, however we now have respect for the opponent.
“We at all times have and the truth that we respect and analyse all opponents in the identical manner is an enormous success issue for us. All opponents have prime qualities but additionally weaknesses and we’ll analyse them.”
Eriksson hinted England had been vulnerable to over-confidence however believes the defeat to Les Bleues did them a favour.
She added: “They bought an actual lesson from France. It may be good when such matches come early in a match, that you simply perceive that you need to come right down to earth once more and be a little bit humble and look at your self.
“It felt like they actually did that earlier than match two towards the Netherlands. Then they exit and appear like a brand new workforce. It may be a bonus for them that they’ve acquired that slap within the face early and have been in a position to study from it and be a little bit extra humble about it.”
“I don’t know why we ought to be scared, hopefully we will present them” 👀
Jonna Andersson responds to Ella Toone’s feedback that Sweden ought to be ‘scared’ of England. pic.twitter.com/K7hijfEKgP
— Sky Sports activities Information (@SkySportsNews) July 16, 2025
Not like Toone, England captain Leah Williamson appeared to have gotten the memo and the Arsenal defender was fast to speak up the Swedes.
She stated: “Sweden’s earlier outcomes at tournaments are unimaginable. They’re relentless in the case of match soccer.
“I do assume they deserve a little bit bit extra recognition.
“When you’ve gotten a workforce who work for one another like Sweden, then you definitely don’t have to essentially have a loopy standout menace as a result of everybody performs their roles.
“They’re laborious to organize for in that sense. The self-discipline for all of them to finish their jobs on the pitch makes them a harmful aspect.”
For England to progress to a gathering with both Norway or Italy within the semi-finals, Williamson should hold Sweden striker and Arsenal team-mate Stina Blackstenius quiet.
Blackstenius scored the one purpose because the Gunners beat Barcelona within the Champions League last in Could and the 29-year-old will spearhead the Swedish assault.
Williamson added: “Stina is an extremely highly effective footballer. She’s very clever together with her runs. She’s a tough participant to play towards in that respect.
“We had been celebrating her success at Arsenal – however not a lot now! She’s an excellent participant and he or she has been for a few years now. Her expertise speaks for itself.
“It’s completely different [to] taking part in one another in coaching with restrictions. It’s uncommon that I get to play towards Stina on this setting. I take pleasure in it, and I like Stina.
“It’s powerful to take away all of that. You don’t wish to deal with it an excessive amount of and there’s plenty of issues that come into play if you play towards a team-mate, however I feel I’ve identified Stina lengthy sufficient that I do know who she is and it’s time to deal with us.”
