If you look at the sign of this match, you don’t immediately believe that these two teams will meet in League C. It is obvious to all of us that the ambitions and level of the players of these teams should allow them to play in a more status division. However, in today’s confrontation, one of the teams may secure this right for themselves. The match will be held under the accompaniment of refereeing by the Ukrainian team of referees.
League of Nations. 5th round
11/16/2024. “Strawberry Arena” (Solna)
Chief referee: Nikolay Balakin (Ukraine)
Sweden 21:45 Slovakia
Text online broadcast of the match – match center UA-Football >>> | video broadcast: MEGOGO Football 4
Sweden News
We have historically become accustomed to considering the Swedish national team as a strong “middle peasant” of European football, which has always been quite close in level to the top national teams. But the Scandinavians have spent the last few years very poorly. The Swedes were not only relegated to League C from League B, but also failed to qualify for Euro 2024. However, it is worth noting that they look confident in this League of Nations.
For example, the new coach of the “blue-yellows” Jon-Dal Tomasson managed to beat the visiting Azerbaijani team (3:1). You, of course, will notice that this is not a very big achievement, but his predecessor could not even do this, thereby depriving the team of a chance to qualify for the current Euro. As for other matches, the Scandinavians won three victories in four games in the fall, recording the only draw with Slovakia.
News from Slovakia
Over the past two years, most fans have been satisfied with the work of their national team coach Francesco Calzoni. Under his leadership, the Slovaks, although they failed the previous Nations League, then confidently qualified for Euro 2024, where they even managed to get out of the group, and in the playoffs they almost beat the main favorite of the tournament – the England team, but missed the decisive goal in the last seconds that match.
In the current Nations League, the Slovakian team also does not disappoint – although not very confidently, it defeats outsiders, and in an important match with the Swedes a 2:2 draw was snatched. In this match, the Slovaks were able to win back a two-goal deficit.
Sweden – Slovakia. Latest team matches
Last matches Sweden:
- Estonia 0:3 Sweden
- Slovakia 2:2 Sweden
- Sweden 3:0 Estonia
- Azerbaijan 1:3 Sweden 1:3
- Sweden 0:3 Serbia
Last matches Slovakia:
- Azerbaijan 1:3 Slovakia
- Slovakia 2:2 Sweden
- Slovakia 2:0 Azerbaijan
- Estonia 0:1 Slovakia 0:1 Slovakia
- England 2:1 (after WC) Slovakia
Sweden – Slovakia. Tournament standings
When the Swedes and Slovaks ended up in the same group of the current League of Nations, it immediately became clear that these teams would compete for first and second places. The level of opposition between these two teams is too weak. Neither Azerbaijan nor Estonia were able to impose competition on the favorites. The only loss of points for both Sweden and Slovakia was the head-to-head match, where they ended up drawing. But, despite the equality in points scored (10 each), the Scandinavians are still first in the table thanks to a better goal difference.
That’s why today’s match should be decisive in the context of the fight for first place, which will allow direct promotion to League B. Even a draw will be enough for the Swedes to guarantee themselves almost one hundred percent leadership at the end of the group stage, while the Slovaks are only satisfied with a victory… or so a draw plus a very, very crushing victory in the last round over Estonia.
Sweden – Slovakia. Personal meetings
The history of personal confrontations between these two teams includes as many as seven fights. Among them there is both a fresh match (a month ago) and retro matches as part of the qualification for the 2002 World Cup. Interestingly, the Slovaks have never won a game with the Swedes. Today’s guests drew four times and lost to the Scandinavians three times. Well, the most painful defeat, of course, was the 2017 match, when Slovakia was defeated with a score of 0:6. Even though it was a friendly game, the bad taste remains.
Sweden – Slovakia. Bet and odds
Sweden – Slovakia. UA-Football match prediction
In the confrontation between these two teams today we are on the side of the guests. Yes, of course, the Swedes are obvious favorites and are playing at home, but Slovakia has a more significant motivation. By and large, the guests are not satisfied with even a draw, so they must act more actively and aggressively. Well, it’s also worth adding that some players from this generation of Sweden do not yet have experience of participating in decisive matches for the national team. The Slovaks gained similar experience this summer, having had a great European Championship. Our forecast is that Slovakia will not lose.
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