Spain’s and Sweden’s World Cup semi-final in Auckland on Tuesday is so tough to call. The winner will be the team that have the best day executing their plan and it is so exciting to see two teams with such clear identities face each other. It’s a game I not only look forward to as a Swede but also as a lover of the game. There will be so many nuances and tactical battles for the players and coaches to solve.
This is the fourth consecutive major tournament in which Sweden have reached at least the semi‑finals so it would be wrong to say it is a surprise they have made the last four. However, considering the changes they have needed to make and how tough the draw was on their side then their performances have been highly impressive. Their quarter-final against Japan was astonishing. A lot of people had Japan as favourites and yet Sweden won comfortably.
