Football News: After Sweden suffered a penalty shoot-out loss to Canada in the football final at the Tokyo 2021 Olympics, they are determined to do better at the Women’s World Cup which begins next month and to bid farewell to Captain Caroline Seger.
A midfield-spinning metronome, Seger, 38 – whose name means victory – has had a stellar career short of major tournament gold medals with her country, but she is in a race against time to be fit for the Women’s Championship. World Cup.
“If all goes well, he will improve his form during the tournament and everyone will see how important a player like him is,” Swedish coach Peter Gerhardsson said.
Traditionally they have been a superpower in women’s football, but Sweden’s only major tournament success came at the European Championships in 1984, their best World Cup result being a runners-up finish in 2003 when they lost to Germany in the final.
The absence of a medal in the championship has not dampened the hopes of Swedish fans, who always place their team among the favorites before each major tournament.
“It’s better that nobody cares,” a smiling Gerhardsson told Reuters in an interview with Solna. “Expectations, demands and positive pressure that way.”
He has overseen a generational shift in recent years, with influential players such as defender Nilla Fischer retiring and goalkeeper Hedvig Lindahl giving way to young prospects.
Drawn in Group G against South Africa, Italy and Argentina, the 63-year-old called on the likes of Barcelona’s Fridolina Rolfo and Arsenal’s Stina Blackstenius to score the opening goal , which he says is crucial in every game.
“Look at the Euros last year – I saw 27, 28 games and the team that scored the first goal won maybe 24 of them – if you can figure out how to score the first goal in every game, you you can coach any team you want,” says Gerhardsson. .
Article tags: Women’s World Cup, World Cup, Sweden
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