After achieving a valuable draw against Spain on an indestructible Swedish engineered bus, the Scandinavians are forced to modify their approach to defeat the also closed Slovakia this Friday in a duel marked by covid-19. If the Nordics lost Dejan Kulusevski, one of their best players, and Svanberg days ago, the Central Europeans were left without the contest of Denis Vavro on Thursday, a defense loaned last season by Lazio to Huesca but unprecedented on the first day against Poland , and a member of its technical direction.
The two a priori weakest teams in Group E, supported by two almost impregnable defense, meet in Saint Petersburg with the dream of going to the second round intact. It is no coincidence that two centers were named the best in the group’s opening games. In the La Cartuja field, Victor Lindelöf was the star of a duel in which the Swedes resisted La Roja’s possession of 75% and even had two perfect chances to win. On Russian soil, the Slovak Milan Skriniar defended like a colossus and scored the goal of the surprising victory against Poland. The Inter defender took all the limelight from Robert Lewandowski.
Both pillars, common in the Champions League, are the patterns of the defensive lines. «I would say that I am a calm player on the field of play. That defines me well, “the 26-year-old Swede from Manchester United described himself. A starter alongside Harry Maguire in the ‘Red Devils’, Lindelöf was used to playing alongside veteran Andreas Granqvist on the national team. But the lack of rhythm of the 36-year-old former captain, often injured in recent months, caused the pair to break for the European Championship. Although with Marcus Danielson no adaptation time was necessary: the two played together at Vasteras, between 2009 and 2011, in the third and second categories in Sweden.
For Slovakia, the influence of Skriniar, of similar characteristics to the Swede (1.88 by 1.87 in height), is not limited to defense. Portugal’s Paulo Sousa, Poland’s coach, acknowledged that he had a plan to deactivate the Serie A champion in set pieces, a facet in which the 26-year-old center-back is gigantic. A little deconcentration and Skriniar is unforgiving. “He played a great game,” said his coach Stefan Tarkovic.
The performance of the Swedish defense cannot be explained without referring to goalkeeper Robin Olsen, author of five key saves against Spain. «It was fantastic. It’s nice to have him behind you, ”Lindelöf acknowledged. Olsen comes out of a season on the bench (only 11 games played) at Everton, on loan from Roma, where he failed to prevail since his transfer in 2018. And full-back Ludwig Augustinsson, for his part, suffered relegation in the Bundesliga with Werder Bremen.
For their part, Slovakians Tomas Hubocan (35 years old) and Peter Pekarik (34 years old) form a side duo of the oldest in the tournament. The first, who went through Olympique de Marseille, announced his international retirement in 2019, before reversing his decision a few months later, convinced by a Tarkovic beset by the lack of guarantee solutions for the position. «The strength of Slovakia is in the collective. It is a very organized team, powerful counterattack. It is also good for him to play the secondary role, “analyzed Sousa before his team’s defeat.
On Friday, the Falcons have a golden opportunity to seal their pass to the second round in the event of a victory. But the Scandinavians would not be too far from the target if they scored all three points. But it is enough just to keep his goal unbeaten. You have to check and show that Sweden has a plan B.
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