Sweden is not afraid of England’s home advantage in the semi, says Asllani
July 25 (Reuters) – Sweden will not be intimidated by hosts England being backed by a passionate home crowd at Bramall Lane, Sheffield in the women’s European Championship semi-final, striker Kosovare Asllani said on the eve of the match.
The Swedes are currently second in the world and have reached the semis of several major tournaments but have failed to clear the penultimate hurdle, which includes the 2019 WC and 2013 EC.
Sweden face an England side who have won every game in their home tournament, conceding one goal while scoring 16, and Asllani expects an “intense game” between two physical teams.
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“It will be two teams looking to play catch-up football. We’ve seen England play fantastic football so far in the tournament but we think it’s a game that will suit us,” she said on Monday.
“We are Sweden, we love to run and that is what we will do tomorrow.
“Obviously England have a home support, but we’ve done it before. We played Brazil in the Maracana in 2016, with only Brazilian fans. We expect a full stadium with English supporters.”
Sweden also have history on their side with England only beating them once in seven competitive matches.
“I think it will be an even game. We have our game plan and we are very excited about it,” Asllani added.
Sweden’s full-backs Hannah Glas and Emma Kullberg are available again after testing positive for covid-19 earlier in the tournament, but defensive colleague Jonna Andersson misses out.
Skipper and midfielder Caroline Seger, who missed the last two games due to injury, will also be available.
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Reporting by Tommy Lund in Gdansk; Editing by Ken Ferris
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