Sweden will be hoping to carry their excellent group form into the knockout rounds of the European Championships when they take on Ukraine on Tuesday evening.
Janne Andersson’s side finished top of Group E, entering the next round of the tournament undefeated with two wins and one draw so far.
Ukraine, meanwhile, were two goals away from crashing out of the tournament altogether. They finished third in Group C and were the fourth-best third-place team in the competition.
Following on from their enthralling 3-2 opening match defeat to the Netherlands, Andriy Shevchenko’s side gained their only points of the tournament in a 2-1 win over North Macedonia, which was ultimately enough to see them qualify despite losing 1-0 to Austria in their final group game.
Neither country has reached the quarter-finals of a European Championship since at least 2004 and both will be delighted to be on the more favourable side of the draw.
They are placed in the side of the draw that involves England and Germany, with the winner of this game playing either of the aforementioned teams at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome on Saturday evening.
And with the Czech Republic knocking out the Netherlands on Sunday, either side will fancy their chances of progressing to the latter stages of the tournament.
The last encounter between the sides was at Euro 2012, when Ukraine won 2-1 thanks to a brace from current boss, Andriy Shevchenko.
In terms of injuries, the Swedes have no new injury concerns, with Andersson likely to name the same XI that beat Poland late on in Saint Petersburg.
Alexander Isak should again start up top, while Robin Quaison was preferred to Marcus Berg when partnering the young striker last time out. The influential Emil Forsberg will also be the key in the Swedish midfield, having scored three times already during tournament.
For Ukraine, Oleksandr Zubkov lasted just 13 minutes against Netherlands before coming off with a calf injury and is unlikely to feature here. Denys Popov is also expected to miss the game.
Mykola Shaparenko should start in Zubkov’s absence, with Oleksandr Zinchenko on the other side of the midfield.
Will Sweden have enough to defeat Ukraine? Let us know in the comments below.
The Brazilian-born Marlos could be brought into the midfield to provide that extra piece of skill that could open up the Swedish defence.
It is a game that could provide goals according to statistics, with Ukraine yet to keep a clean sheet in a European Championship match.
However, they have proved that with the likes of Roman Yaremchuk and West Ham ’s Andriy Yarmolenko on the pitch, they have the quality to outscore their opponents.
However, Andersson’s side will come into the game with great confidence, his Swedish team are yet to lose in 2021, winning seven of their eight matches.
How to watch Sweden vs Ukraine?
The game will follow the England v Germany game, with coverage starting at 7:30pm on BBC, with the game from Hampden Park kicking off at 8pm.
Viewers will also be able to watch the game online via BBC iPlayer.
Odds
Sweden - 7/5
Draw - 11/5
Ukraine - 11/5
Alexander Isak to score and Sweden to win 2-0 – 17/1
*Odds are supplied by Grosvenor Sports and are subject to change.
