Georgia surprises Sweden with a 2-0 win in the European qualifiers
BATUMI, Georgia (AP) – Sweden’s chances of securing first place in their World Cup qualifying group were damaged by a …
BATUMI, Georgia (AP) – Sweden’s chances to secure first place in their World Cup qualifying group were damaged with a 2-0 loss against already knocked out Georgia on Thursday.
Khvicha Kvaratskhelia scored two goals in the second half to give Georgia its second win in Group B and leave Sweden two points ahead of Spain, who can take over first place when it plays against Greece later on Thursday.
Spain will host Sweden in their last qualifier.
A draw against Greece guarantees Spain at least a second place in the group.
Only the group winners will automatically qualify for next year’s World Cup in Qatar, while the runner-up will have to go through a play-off with the other runners-up and two group winners from the UEFA Nations League.
Sweden had the most chances during the entire match against Georgia, where Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Alexander Isak wasted the best before Kvaratskhelia gave the hosts the victory with goals in the 61st and 77th minutes.
Georgia is fourth in the group with seven points in eight games and does not have a chance to finish among the top two. Its only other victory was in Kosovo.
Sweden’s only other loss was in Greece.
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