Full time: Sweden 3-0 Wales
Peep peep! Not a great day for Wales, though they were a lot better after the introduction of Gareth Bale. And this won’t matter a jot if they beat Slovakia next week. Sweden looked good, especially Zlatan and Forsberg, and at 6/1 look a decent outside bet to win their group. Thanks for your company, bye!
GOAL! Sweden 3-0 Wales (Guidetti 87)
After Bale’s free-kick, Sweden lump the ball down the other end of the pitch. Guidetti heads it over Ashley Williams 20 yards out and then smashes the ball through Ward and into the net.
Updated
87 min I have no idea what happened with the free-kick as our feed cut out, but I know that Bale didn’t score. Oh, also...
86 min This is Wales’ best spell of the match, a reflection of the presence of Bale, the absence of Ibrahimovic, and the scoreline in the match. Ramsey is fouled 30 yards from goal, in Grid A of the BaleZone™.
85 min Bale scoots down the right, where Durmaz knocks him flying over the touchline. It looked worse than it was, though it still wasn’t a great tackle. From the resulting free-kick, Church flicks a bouncing ball over the bar from six yards. It was a difficult chance.
84 min If I could be any footballer in the world, I wouldn’t say Messi, Ronaldo, Iniesta. I’d go Seb Larsson.
80 min A lovely run from Huws, who uses sleight of hip to skip around a defender in the box before cutting it back to Bale, 10 yards out. The sliding Augustinsson makes a great interception. Moments later, Ramsey’s long inswinging free-kick from the left would have sneaked in at the far post but for Olsen’s diving save.
79 min A corner to Wales, their first of the game. It’s headed behind by Granqvist for another corner, which I think is only their second of the game. It comes to nothing.
76 min Bale’s wobbling, bouncing cross from the right wing almost sneaks in at the far post. Moments later, Marcus Berg is replaced by Big John Guidetti.
Updated
73 min While the keeper Olsen is treated after an accidental clash with Bale, Wales make two more substitutions: Simon Church and Emyr Huws (who isn’t in the squad for the Euros) for Sam Vokes and Jonny Williams.
72 min Wales have looked better since Bale came on. This is the real quiz. They haven’t created anything, but there’s a greater purpose and a smaller gap between Vokes and everyone else.
70 min Vokes clips a centre-to-left pass to Bale, whose volley from the corner of the box deflects across the area to safety.
67 min With Zlatan off the field, all eyes are on Gareth Bale. Literally. I don’t think he’s touched the ball yet.
64 min Williams is okay, though it probably makes sense to take him off as a precaution. In the meantime, Bale replaces Andy King to a hearty ovation. James Collins also comes on for James Chester, and David Vaughan is replaced by David Edwards.
62 min This is a bit worrying for Wales. After heading a free-kick over the bar, Ashley Williams falls awkwardly and does something to his knee. While he’s being treated Gareth Bale gets ready to come on.
60 min An optimistic curler from King goes well wide of the far post. Time for three Swedish substitutions, with Zlatan and Forsberg going off. Both were excellent, Zlatan in particular. Lewicki also goes off, with Ekdal, Kujovic and Durmaz coming on.
GOAL! Sweden 2-0 Wales (Lustig 57)
The corner leads to a goal. The ball was cleared off the line twice by Taylor before coming back to Lustig, who drove it into the net from six yards.
Updated
57 min Forsberg looks a good player, with lovely awareness. He scoots down the left and cuts it back to Ibrahimovic, whose left-footed shot from the edge of the box deflects wide for a corner. From which...
55 min That could have been 2-0. Forsberg’s close-range shot was smothered after another neat move, but he was sufficiently aware to look up and play a diagonal ball across the box to Lustig, whose goalbound shot was headed clear by Davies.
Updated
52 min Here’s Duncan Mutula: “Any news on Vardy?” Last I heard, his wife was getting viciously abused on Twitter for a potential move that isn’t her doing and might not even happen.
51 min There’s far too big a gap between the midfield and Vokes. I suppose there’s no point rushing to judgement about Wales without Gareth Bale, because so much revolves around him. They need a bit more from Aaron Ramsey, mind.
France 84, Holland 88, Spain 08: which is the best ever Euros team? | By Rob Smyth https://t.co/k97OkMbM4v pic.twitter.com/9TaCCPJ36H
— Guardian sport (@guardian_sport) June 5, 2016
49 min Berg’s lob is cleared off the line by Chester. That was an excellent clearance, as he was sliding towards his own goal, close to the post, and could easily have done a Phil Babb. I have no idea what happened before that because the cameraman was still showing a replay from an earlier passage of play.
46 min Wales begin the second half, having not managed a shot at goal in the first half.
Half-time substitutions
Two goalkeeping changes: Olsen for Isaksson, Liverpool’s Danny Ward for Hennessey. And Ludwig Augustinsson replaces Martin Olsson.
Updated
Half-time reading
Half-time: Sweden 1-0 Wales
Typical friendly fare. The half was most notable for a few demonstrations of Ibrahimovic’s genius. See you in 10 minutes for more of the same, and a bit of Gareth Bale!
44 min If Zlatan was born in England, he’d probably have been dismissed as a luxury player and stuck on the bench for most of his career.
42 min Another nutmeg from Zlatan, this time on David Vaughan. I wonder if he’s ever done all 11 in one game.
GOAL! Sweden 1-0 Wales (Forsberg 40)
Good goal, this. Ibrahimovic slipped Williams with a nice touch on the halfway line and ran to the left edge of the box. Then he came back infield, waited for support and eased it back to Forsberg 25 yards out. He took a touch and drove a precise low shot into the bottom corner.
Updated
39 min Look, I love you and I want you to stay but I want what’s best for you and you’re better off with this guy.
35 min Another fine ball from Ibrahimovic finds Berg, whose low cross hits the arm of the crouching Chester. It goes behind for a corner, and that’s all Sweden get despite their appeal for a penalty.
34 min Big Sam Vokes, to give him his full name, whistles a half-volley over the bar from the edge of the box. He was offside anyway. He has been a bit isolated today, and the daft wee bugger will be even more isolated if he keeps running offside.
31 min Olsson hits a cross straight into the coupon of Jonny Williams, knocking him off his feet. He’s still down, lying on his front. It was quite a smack, but after around a minute of treatment he seems fine.
30 min This, as the commentator on Premier Sports has just said, is “a typical friendly match”.
29 min #Zlatan curls a tame free-kick into the wall.
28 min Ibrahimovic breaks into a walk and finds Forsberg, who is hacked from behind by Vaughan, a thoroughly inept piece of defending. It’s a free-kick to Sweden, 20 yards out, just left of centre. Who might take it?
25 min Re: Ramsey’s peroxide hair. A few players did something similar in the summer of 1995, including Robbie Fowler. Am I imagining it, or did Steve Stone bleach the little bit of hair he had left at the sides?
23 min “Afternoon Rob,” says Simon McMahon. “58 years though. If Scotland have to wait that long it’ll be 2056 before we qualify again. I’ll be 84. And England will have endured 90 years of hurt.”
And Wayne Rooney will still be getting a game in midfield.
21 min Ibrahimovic slams a first-time curler not far wide from 20 yards.
19 min Jonny Williams, who has been bright and breezy in possession, is fouled 35 yards from goal. Wales elect to take it short rather than kick for goal.
17 min Taylor’s fierce shot from the edge of the box is blocked by a charging defender. Wales are coming into the game a bit more.
13 min A couple of corners from Sweden, who are thus far in control of what is a pretty relaxed game. There has only been one vaguely wince-inducing foul, from Aaron Ramsey. When the second corner is swung back in, Forsberg’s dangerous header across the six-yard line is booted clear by Ashley Williams. He is a brilliant defender; I’m surprised – all doo respect – that a big club didn’t take him a couple of years ago.
10 min Taylor has started brightly for Wales, particularly going forward.
8 min “Rob, apparently this game is The Big Z’s final game on Swedish soil, when it comes to the national team in Stockholm,” writes Ma. L.
He is so regal that he should have a farewell presentation before and after every game he plays. Also, The Big Z would be a great name for a Shane Black film.
6 min Wales could be three down already. After an excellent one-touch move from Sweden, Ashley Williams slides to make a great block from Berg’s goalbound shot.
5 min A half-chance for Lustig, who heads a right-wing corner wide. It’s all Sweden so far.
1 min Sweden almost score after 23 seconds. A lordly drag-over and nutmegged through ball from Zlatan puts Olsson clear on the left of the box. His cross is blocked – with a consequent appeal for handball – and he blooters the rebound into orbit from a tight angle. That was glorious from #Zlatan, with Gunter the nutmeg victim.
Updated
1 min Sweden, in yellow, kick off from left to right. They are in yellow; Wales are in red.
Zlatan is swanning round, waving and shaking hands like he’s on a promotional tour rather than preparing for a football match. Which he is, I suppose. What a wonderfully absurd character.
There are loads of Wales fans at the ground, and a few of them look sober. It’s a really good atmosphere actually, with the mood of a farewell party. This is the good bit: everyone is optimistic, everyone BELIEVES, nobody has become a national scapegoat.
Plug it real good
Here’s a piece discussing which is the greatest European Championship side of all time (clue: it’s West Germany 1972).
And here’s a chat with Sol Campbell about Soccer Aid, his management ambitions and tears of joy at Old Trafford.
An email!
“That Bale goal was a peach, fair play,” says Phil Wainwright. “Similar to the one on the opposite side versus Barça in the CDR final in 2014. Incredibly inept attempt to take him out, as well, by that clown of a defender on halfway.”
Team news: Gareth Bale is on the bench
Sweden (4-4-2) Isaksson; Lustig, Johansson, Granqvist, Olsson; Larsson, Kallstrom, Lewicki, Forsberg; Berg, Ibrahimovic.
Wales (3-5-1-1) Hennessey, Chester, A Williams, Davies; Gunter, Vaughan, King, Ramsey, Taylor; J Williams; Vokes.
Preamble
The moment has almost arrived. After an endless wait, during which we all wondered whether it would ever happen, Wales are finally going to share a football field with Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
Then next week, as a nice little bonus, Wales will play in a major tournament for the first time in 58 years.
This is the final friendly for both sides before flip gets real. Wales start their Euro 2016 campaign against Slovakia on Saturday. Sweden begin theirs against 11 dead Irishmen walking two days later.
Let’s be honest, there isn’t much riding on today. We couldn’t sell the contents of an Avon catalogue back in the day, so we’ve no chance of Donkinging this one. But it is a chance to get in the mood for next week, to see Gareth Bale play a friendly for the first time since March 2014 - when he scored this ridiculous goal - and most of all, to experience #Zlatan.
Kick off is at 3pm in Wales, 4pm at the Friends Arena in Stockholm.
Updated
