Graphic by Michael Alesich
 
Head Coach: Peter Gerhardsson  Group: G
Confederation: UEFA Ranking: 5
Highest 3 (June 2007)
Lowest 11 (June 2018)
Federation: SvFF
Social Media:
 

 

Sweden finished third at the 2019 World Cup in France and runners-up at 2016 Olympics in Brazil. Ranked among the better teams in the world in the last 20 years, they are yet to win a major competition. 

The strength of Swedish women’s football is demonstrated by their Olympic participation record: they have contested every Olympics since and including 1996, when women’s Olympic football commenced.

Sweden won World Cup silver in 2003 and bronze in 1991 and 2011 (as well as 2019 as mentioned above), to add to their three European Championship silvers from 1987, 1995, and 2001. 

Squad

Goalkeepers

  • Jennifer Falk
  • Hedvig Lindahl
  • Zecira Musovic

Defenders

  • Jonna Andersson
  • Nathalie Bjorn
  • Magda Eriksson
  • Hanna Glas
  • Amanda Ilestedt
  • Emma Kullberg
  • Julia Roddar

Midfielders

  • Filippa Angeldahl
  • Kosovare Asllani
  • Hanna Bennison
  • Olivia Schough
  • Caroline Seger

Forwards

  • Anna Anvegard
  • Stina Blackstenius
  • Rebecka Blomqvist
  • Lina Hurtig
  • Sofia Jakobsson
  • Madelen Janogy
  • Fridolina Rolfo

Coach

Peter Gerhardsson took over from Pia Sundhage as national team women’s coach following the 2017 European Championship. At that point, he had been BK Häcken‘s men’s team head coach since 2009 in a run of 280 games. 

That’s not to say that Gerhadsson was a women’s football novice when he took over. He was part of the Swedish Women’s team staff at the 1996 Olympics, and also coached Bälinge IF in 1997/98 before returning to the men’s game.

 

 
 
 
 
 
View this post on Instagram
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 

A post shared by Swedish Women’s National team (@swewnt)

 
Gerhadsson’s philosophy would seem to strike a more even balance between emphasis on defence and attack compared to predecessor Sundhage who was more defense-oriented. His record since taking over is 11 wins (73%), 2 draws (13%), and 2 losses, with 34 goals scored (at an average 2.26 per game) and 6 conceded (0.4 goals per game). Compare that to Sundhage’s record of 43 wins (53%), 18 draws (22%), and 20 losses, with 156 goals scored (at an average 1.93 per game) and 732 conceded (0.89 per game).

As noted in the Gerhadsson story above, Kosovare Asllani said this about him in late 2019: “We changed a lot in our game when we got our new head coach… He trusts us a lot and gives us a lot of responsibility, and that’s exactly what I need. It’s not just with me; it’s with all the players.

We play to our strength and put the players where they want to play, not in a system where they don’t fit.”   

Last Olympics

Sweden were runners-up to Germany in the 2016 Rio Olympics, losing 2-1 in the final (highlights here), after penalty shootout victories over the United States and Brazil in the quarter- and semi-finals. This was Sweden’s first Olympic women’s football medal.

The quarter-final victory over the US infamously led to the US goalkeeper Hope Solo describing the Swedes as a “bunch of cowards” under then-coach Sundhage, frustrated by the Swedish tactics (and no doubt by the fact that the US had not been able to beat the Swedes in four successive games to that point). See here for US football analyst (and dual Olympic gold medalist) Julie Foudy‘s alternate view of the outcome. (The US were to atone in the France 2019 Women’s World Cup, defeating the Swedes 2-0, although by this point both teams were already through to the next stage).

Read more: USA Olympic Preview.

Qualifying Path

The UEFA confederation receives three berths for the Olympic Games, with the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup serving as the qualifying tournament.

Sweden secured their Olympic participation as one of the three top European nations at the World Cup (as did the Netherlands and England), defeating England in the third-place playoff game. 

 

 
‘Two months until Olympic football !’

The Strengths

Unafraid to be physical and difficult to break down, Sweden is known for their consistency, as its international record shows.

Their squad is packed with experience and in any given contest in the Olympic tournament the team’s average age is likely to be higher than their opponent – a selection policy that has its swings and roundabouts. They are hardy, difficult to surprise, and are accustomed to dealing with different types of opponents, strategies, and situations.  

The Challenge

The first major challenge for the Swedish team is to survive the 2020 Olympic edition of the group of death, with Group G opponents in the form of the USA, Australia, and New Zealand. 

The USA hasn’t lost since January 2019 and certainly have no shortage of motivation against the Swedes, especially given Sweden was the last team to prevent them from winning, in April 2021. And of course, the Aussies (who have beaten the Swedes just once in 11 outings) and Kiwis (who have never played Sweden) will have progression designs of their own. The USA, Sweden and Australia were also in the same group in the 2015 World Cup, with all three teams advancing to the knockout stage in that tournament.

Should Sweden finish second in the group they will face the winner of Group F, with the Netherlands favoured to top that group.

Navigating through the early stages of the tournament will be difficult, but if Sweden does, they will have already proved themselves to be formidable opponents as the medal games approach.  

Key Players

Magdalena Eriksson

 

 

Chelsea FC captain and widely regarded as one of the finest defenders in European women’s football, Magdalena Eriksson was named 2020 Swedish footballer of the year.

Erikkson is pictured below with her fellow national team players for the September 2020 game against Iceland: 

 

Kosovare Asllani

Kosovare Asllani is a Real Madrid attacking midfielder who topped her nation’s goal-scoring tally in the 2019 World Cup in France. Below is a tweet following Sweden’s win against Iceland in October 2020, which gained them entry to the European 2022 championship.

 

Her efforts in 2019 also didn’t go unnoticed:

Prediction

If Sweden comes second in Group G to the USA, they will likely face the Netherlands in the quarter-final, which could well be their undoing. 

If Sweden comes third in Group G and moves ahead as one of the best performing third-placed teams, they instead face the winner of Group E which, regardless of who it is, will be lower ranked than the Dutch. This outcome could see Sweden go deep into the tournament.

Read more: The Netherlands Olympic Preview.

Matches

Date Local Time AEST Venue Team A v Team B
21/7/2021 5:30 PM 6:30 PM Tokyo Stadium Sweden vs USA
24/7/2021 5:30 PM 6:30 PM Saitama Stadium Sweden vs Australia
27/7/2021 5:00 PM 6:00 PM Miyagi Stadium New Zealand vs Sweden

 

Follow Beyond 90's coverage of the Olympics.
Steffen Moebus
Steffen Moebus
Steffen is a life-long Canberra resident and enjoys covering football in and around his home town, as well as Aussies participating in the Nordic leagues (Norway, Sweden, Iceland, Denmark).
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