Ukraine’s first match in Euro 2012 on June 11 – its first ever in a European Championship – will be a tricky game against Sweden, widely viewed as Group D’s underdog.
The Swedes should not be underestimated, especially when their world-class captain Zlatan Ibrahimovic is on his game.
Sweden beat Ukraine 1-0 in a friendly in August last year, and qualified for the finals after beating powerhouse Holland 3-2 on Oct. 11.
Experts say the success or failure of the Blue-Yellows largely hinges on the performances of the enigmatic striker Ibrahimovic.
“You can’t ignore Ibrahimovic…but…if he has a bad game, it seems like the other players get paralyzed,” said Johan Orrenius, a sports reporter for Swedish daily Expressen.
The AC Milan striker is a force to reckon with as their top scorer with five goals during the Euro qualifiers. He is strong and agile, and boasts excellent ball control, yet he is known to drift in and out of games, especially in big matches.
More worrisome for Ukraine is there isn’t anyone who could match up against Ibrahimovic, according to former Dynamo Kyiv striker Oleg Salenko.
The Swedish team always fights. We know we’re not Brazil but we’re a hard team to beat and play with good team spirit.
– Johan Orrenius, a sports reporter for Swedish daily Expressen
Salenko told the Kyiv Post that it will be difficult for someone on the Ukraine team to mark the dangerous 30-year old striker.
“You’ve got to play Ibrahimovic carefully…but [Dynamo Kyiv central defender] Taras Mikhalik is injured again, [Shakhtar Donetsk defender Dmytro] Chygrynskiy I believe won’t reach his previous form, [Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk central defenders] Vitaliy Mandziuk and Yevhen Cherebyachko and [Shakhtar Donetsk defender] Oleksandr Kucher aren’t up to the task,” said Salenko.
“So you have a hole” in the defense.
Sweden might have begun unraveling the enigma of having Ibrahimovic perform better with his national team.
On Feb. 26 he scored a goal and had two assists against Croatia in their friendly in Zagreb.
In that match, coach Erik Hamren changed Ibrahimovic’s position so he was playing behind the main striker, Johan Elmander, noted Erik Niva, a football writer for Sweden’s largest daily Aftonbladet.
Sweden might not have any other world-renowned players, but it makes up for it in team stability. It also has a new teenage hotshot – John Guidetti – who is expected to make an impact off the bench.
Orrenius said Sweden’s main concern is the back four. It lacks a good option on the right with Celtic defender Mikael Lustig currently injured, and central defender Olof Melberg still needs a reliable partner.
Their best hope is in Bromwich defender Jonas Olsson but he is short on national team experience.
It’s still a tough defense to crack which allowed 20 goals less than its offense scored in the qualifiers.
“The Swedish team always fights. We know we’re not Brazil but we’re a hard team to beat and play with good team spirit,” Orrenius said.
“Then there’s Ibrahimovic again; this will be probably be his last major championship and he will be hungry as a wolf.”
As for Group D opponents, Sweden has never lost to England in official play, but has lost three to France, and has beaten Ukraine once in three, drawing and losing the other two, all in friendly games.
And of the four, Sweden is perhaps the steadiest team. France is still going through a major makeover but appears to have the best players, although they lack experience. England is undergoing a coaching change and it’s still unclear who will play up front for two games in Wayne Rooney’s absence.
And Ukraine coach Oleh Blokhin is still trying to decide who will start amid complaints that many players he’s calling up to play aren’t in top shape.
“If they (France) click like they did (in their 2-1 victory over Germany on Feb. 29), then they’ll do well,” Niva said. “I feel Sweden, Ukraine and England are at the same level below France – we have a 33 percent chance of making it into the quarterfinals.”
Experts say it’s unlikely that any team will go undefeated in the group, attesting to the tough competition. And there’s one more advantage Sweden has: Playing all of its group games in Kyiv with customary large Swedish fan support.
“This will certainly be an advantage against England and France. I don’t know why England chose to have their camp in Krakow” in Poland, Orrenius said.
It’s the Ukraine game Sweden wants to avoid giving away for fear of repeating its Euro 2000 first game loss to host Belgium, after which it never fully recovered in the tournament.
“We’re aware of the importance of the first game…surviving the first game is a big stepping stone,” Niva said.
Sweden
Head coach – Erik Hamren
Capitan – Zlatan Ibrahimovic
Star Player – Zlatan Ibrahimovic
Nickname – The Blue-Yellows
FIFA world ranking – 17th
Best World Cup result – Runner-up, 1958
Best European Championship result – Semifinal, 1992
Base for Euro 2012 – Koncha-Zaspa, Kyiv
Games in Euro 2012 Group D – Ukraine (June 11, Kyiv), England (June 15, Kyiv), France (June 19, Kyiv)
Kyiv Post staff writer Mark Rachkevych can be reached at [email protected].
