Shortly before kick-off, the Swedish national team management announced that team captain and key defender Victor Nilsson Lindelöf would miss the training session due to a concussion. However, Graham Potter insisted that it was a precautionary measure and that his World Cup is not in danger; Sweden should be happy about that.
Just like in Oslo – where Sweden fell to Norway 1–3 – the Swedish back line started shakily. It took the Greeks only ten minutes to punish them when Kostas Tsimikas made it 0–1 after Sweden failed to clear a corner. The first half then continued with the Greeks creating chaos in the Swedish half with sharp changes of play.
Scattered bird calls
The attacking play didn’t look much better. Sweden’s attacking duo Alexander Isak and Viktor Gyökeres struggled against a united Greek defense, and Sweden had created few chances when the half-time whistle sounded; scattered boos were heard at Strawberry Arena.
National team coach Graham Potter was not happy with the first half.
“We’re giving up too many cheap chances. We can talk tactics all day, but if you give the ball away, the opponents will have chances. So we have to get better there,” he said after the match.
Early in the second half, however, Viktor Gyökeres stepped up and gave Sweden some hope when he scored from a free kick to make it 1–1.
“They go in sometimes, so it was nice,” Gyökeres said, who celebrated his 28th birthday with a goal.
Not long after the equalizer, both teams made large changes to their starting elevens. Sweden brought in speed and spirit with Taha Ali and penalty-area weight with Gustaf Nilsson.
The duo was behind Sweden’s 2-1 goal when Ali stormed forward on the left wing and passed the ball to Gustaf Nilsson who scored the opening goal.
The result was a cold shower
But the nice goal wasn’t enough. During stoppage time, the guests pressed and it paid off when Giorgos Masouras equalized with just a couple of minutes left to play.
“A very unnecessary goal to concede at the end, but at the same time it doesn’t matter that much. We played a much better match than last time and we get something positive from here,” says Gustaf Nilsson, the 2-1 scorer, to Viaplay.
What looked like an important victory ahead of the World Cup adventure turned into a heavy blow.
Sweden plays its opening match in the World Cup in Monterrey, Mexico, when Tunisia awaits on June 15.
The World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico will be played between June 11 and July 19.
