The chase for the 2016 European Cup will take its next step on Thursday. Two teams attempting to qualify for the tournament will do battle in a match between Sweden and Russia. The contest scheduled for 2:45 p.m. ET will be held at the Friends Arena in Solna and can be live streamed here free. Additional TV coverage can be found on Fox Sports 2.
Sweden team doctor Leif Sward had this to offer about the team's leading striker, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, ahead of today's European qualifier (via Fox Sports): "We conducted a thorough investigation, and we can say that it is an inexplicable injury. There are no major signs of inflammation, but he feels some pain. We do not want to artificially accelerate the recovery, because the Achilles tendon could be damaged. Zlatan is getting better and better, but even with minimal inflammation, he will not play."
That, however, is not enough to deter head coach Erik Hamren, who added: "We would like to play the way we are used to, but we have to look at the real possibilities. If Zlatan will not play, we will resort to Plan B and I will not say that it will not affect us—individual skill means a lot."
"But we have a lot to offer against opponents without Ibrahimovic," Hamren said. "We are willing to take collective responsibility."
Tactical Preview
Player to Watch: Tasked with replacing the footballing talents of Ibrahimovic is Johan Elmander. The 33-year-old has made four starts in the Superliga, contributing one goal in the process.
Sweden's Projected Lineup (4-4-2): Isaksson; Antonsson, Granqvist, Olsson, Bengtsson; Kallstrom, Larsson, Zengin, Durmaz; Elmander, Toivonen
Russia's Projected Lineup (4-4-2): Akinfeev; Berezutski, Ignashevich, Smolnikov, Semenov; Samedov, Dzagoev, Glushakov, Cheryshev; Kerzhakov, Dzyuba
Note: Credit all statistics to officially licensed data from Opta Sports (via WhoScored).
© Copyright 2024 Sports World News, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
