England vs. Sweden: 5 key matchups

England face Sweden in the quarterfinals of the World Cup on Saturday, July 7. Here are five possible matchups that could decide the result.

In one of the most unlikely quarterfinals at this World Cup, England will face Sweden with both sides hoping to keep their runs going. The elimination of some of the top contenders has offered the chance of an unexpected finalist this year, with Russia and Croatia facing off in the other quarterfinal on this half of the draw. Here are five matchups that could decide the result.

Marcus Berg vs. goal drought

Marcus Berg was in prolific form before the the World Cup. The Al Ain striker hit 25 goals in 21 appearances in the Gulf League this season and found the net eight times in Sweden’s 11 games on the road to Russia. It seemed Berg’s finishing touch and Emil Forsberg’s creativity would be more than enough to fill a Zlatan Ibrahimovic-sized hole in Sweden’s offense.

In reality, things haven’t gone that smoothly for Berg, despite his nation’s success. Berg has had 13 attempts on goal and is still waiting on his first in the competition. It’s not like Berg hasn’t been presented with clear-cut chances either, with all his shots coming inside the area and the forward guilty of missing good opportunities against South Korea and Germany in the group stages. His frustrations seemed to come to the fore against Switzerland, as he snatched at efforts inside the area despite having plenty of time to compose himself.

Despite his struggles in front of goal, Sweden are still through to their first World Cup quarterfinal in 24 years and Berg offers much more to this team than just goals. However, his country have a once in a lifetime chance to do something special in Russia and if they wish to take it with both arms, they’ll need Berg back to his clinical best.

Andreas Granqvist vs. Harry Kane

Even by Harry Kane’s high standards, he’s had an impressive World Cup so far. The 24-year old has scored six goals, albeit five of them came against Tunisia and Panama. Even so, Kane is still the first the striker to score more than five World Cup goals in a single tournament since Ronaldo scored eight in 2002. He’s now beginning to creep up on Gary Lineker’s English record of 10 goals at World Cups in just his debut tournament.

Outside of the goals, Kane has proven himself a capable leader and, when he’s not spearheading the attack, he’s dictating English counter-attacks with his wide range of passing. Having gotten the best of most of the defenders he’s faced so far, he’s now facing his sternest test against a Sweden back line that has conceded just two goals, both in a defeat against Germany.

Marshalling the back line is Andreas Granqvist, an international veteran with 76 caps to his name and Sweden’s captain. The 33-year old has established himself as a stalwart for the national side and sides across Europe after struggling in a short stint with Wigan in 2007. Last year, he was named Swedish player of the year and has been a leading light in the post-Zlatan era.

Though Kane deserves the plaudits he’s received so far, he’ll have to work much harder against this Swedish defense than he has so far if he wants to add to his goal tally. The Scandinavians are well-drilled on set pieces, and England are unlikely to fool them as easily as they did their group stage opponents.

Raheem Sterling vs. the critics

It’s fair to say Raheem Sterling hasn’t had a great World Cup so far, and very few could blame him. Manchester City’s star winger has been the center of a vicious media campaign since his breakout season at Liverpool five years ago. Things have gotten more intense for the 24-year-old since he moved to Manchester, especially after a very fruitful 2017-18 which saw him help the Citizens win a domestic double.

Sterling’s every move at this World Cup has been examined and scrutinized; seemingly no stone has been left unturned by sections the English media in an attempt to get under the winger’s skin. To an extent, it’s worked. Sterling started the opening game against Tunisia like a man with something to prove and it didn’t work. Since that game Sterling has been rather ordinary.

Sweden offer a fresh start for Sterling, with few England internationals capable of saying they’ve been this deep into an international tournament with the Three Lions. It might be cliched, but this Sweden back line is quite old and Sterling has the ability to beat a man and the pace to get away from his marker.

The City winger has shown his ability enough times this season to warrant his role in the national team setup and no drama-seeking newspaper should change that. Sterling should go into this game knowing he has nothing to prove. If he can do that, one suspects he’ll shut up his critics along the way.

Emil Forsberg vs. Ashley Young

His goal against Switzerland will mean the world to Emil Forsberg. He had struggled to adapt to his limited role on the left side of Sweden’s midfield, but against the Swiss, Forsberg finally seemed to figured out how to make the most of his role in the team and was fully deserving of the deciding goal after one of his best performances in the tournament so far.

Its a great time for the RB Leipzig man to find his form as he’ll likely spend much of this upcoming quarterfinal hugging the sideline and trying to exploit the space left by Ashley Young on the counter.

The jury is still out on how good a wing-back Young is, and he’s left a lot to be desired in a number of key fixtures for Manchester United this season. Forsberg will undoubtedly fancy his chances against Young on the counter and as the clear star player in this Swedish collective, Young will have to put in quite a shift to ensure Forsberg doesn’t find the little space he needs to cause England’s defense trouble.

Football coming home vs. Football going home

After a long absence, England are back in the big leagues. Neutrals have long been subjected to the famous song lyrics, “football’s coming home.” Since the song was released, however, this might be the first time England are in with a genuine chance of bringing football home, so to speak. The elimination of Spain and Germany has meant this side of the bracket is likely to produce a shock finalist with Russia, Croatia and Sweden the foes between England and a first final since 1966.

But it’s not just the draw that has England in this positions. The Three Lions have actually proven to be a surprisingly good team and it has been a long time since an English side has looked so competent in an international tournament. However, all the hype shouldn’t distract from an extremely impressive Swedish outfit who have responded to their star player’s retirement in outstanding fashion. No different than Gareth Southgate’s side, Sweden will look at this bracket and feel they have a chance of making a shock appearance in Moscow on July 15.

Next: Russia 2018: The best player on every team at the World Cup

They have history on their side having played England 20 times, winning seven and drawing nine. England only recorded their first win against Sweden in 2012, ending a run stretching back to 1968. The latter stages of the World Cup are decided on fine margins; the slightest mistake will likely be punished. Few big quarterfinals like this are won by large margins. The deciding goal could come down to a moment of complacency, a piece of individual brilliance or a mistake. Both Sweden and England must be aware of how fine a line it is between football coming home and football going home.