Highlights, Sweden vs England, FIFA World Cup 2018, Quarter-final at Samara: Three Lions reach semis after 28 years

Well..

When you can’t get “it’s coming home” theme tune out your head pic.twitter.com/RisR1wPL31

— Kyle Walker (@kylewalker2) July 7, 2018

Dominating performance from England! 

He’s an asset for his team! 

Harry Maguire's #WorldCup game by numbers vs. #SWE:

85% passing accuracy
68 touches
9 aerial duels won
6 clearances
2 shots
2 chances created
1 shot on target
1 goal

Mt. Maguire reaches new heights. 🗻 pic.twitter.com/mj1HGcTZJc

— Squawka (@Squawka) July 7, 2018

First World Cup semis after 28 years. 

VIDEO: England fans in London react to the team's second goal against Sweden in the #WorldCup quarter-final pic.twitter.com/QBlPyShc3C

— AFP News Agency (@AFP) July 7, 2018

Only third time! 

3 - England have progressed into the semi-finals of the World Cup for only the third time, having also done so in 1966 and 1990. Magic. #ENG #SWEENG #WorldCup pic.twitter.com/AfiTZEml04

— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) July 7, 2018

Full-time! SWE 0-2 ENG

England are through to the semifinals of a World Cup for the first time since 1990. A comfortable win today will raise the hopes even further. Get ready for a deluge of patriotic coverage by the British press. Good luck to everyone!

Full-time! SWE 0-2 ENG

It’s all over. England are through to the semi-final of the FIFA World Cup. They will either face Croatia or host nation Russia. 

Jubilation for Harry Kane and Co.

90+2’ SWE 0-2 ENG

Sweden has switched to a three-man defence after the introduction of Pontus Jansson. Even though this move is supposed to make the Swedes more attacking, there has been no evidence of that.

90’ SWE 0-2 ENG

Free-kick for Sweden at a dangerous position. Augustinsson hits it high.

Marcus Rashford comes off the bench to replace Raheem Sterling. 

Five minutes of added time.

86’ SWE 0-2 ENG

The only bit of entertainment going on at the moment is the constant chatter between Berg and Stones. Neither of them look likely to lose their heads but the referee calms them down when he notices the hot-headedness.

83’ SWE 0-2 ENG

This game looks done. Sweden not looking threatening enough while England are not keen to add more goals. 

Meanwhile change for England. Eric Dier replaces Jordan Henderson.

78’ SWE 0-2 ENG

England has activated lockdown mode. Delph replaces Dele Alli even as the Three Lions hog possession to deny Sweden the slightest inkling of a comeback.

76’ SWE 0-2 ENG

England make their first change. Dele Alli is off. Fabian Delph comes on to the field.

Yup! 

Pickford is the keeper Joe Hart thinks he is

— Nooruddean (@BeardedGenius) July 7, 2018

74’ SWE 0-2 ENG

Oh dear, Marcus Berg. He is once again unable to beat the goalkeeper and it seems like he will finish the World Cup with no goals. Before the match, Sweden’s lack of goals was a worry and it has come back to bite Janne Andersson’s team

71’ SWE 0-2 ENG

Pickford with yet another great save! 

Berg controls the ball on the centre of the box and hits a left-footer on target only for Pickford to get a fingertips save.

Fifth header! 

That goal was the FIFTH header to find the back of the net for @England at this #WorldCup so far - more than any other team! #SWEENG 0-2 pic.twitter.com/8J3GKJ75M0

— FIFA World Cup (@FIFAWorldCup) July 7, 2018

He’s making a habit of it

When you just keep pulling out ridiculous saves... pic.twitter.com/b5lwXXtt4t

— Squawka Live (@Squawka_Live) July 7, 2018

67’ SWE 0-2 ENG

Double substitution by Sweden. Forsberg and Toivonen off, Martin Olsson and Guidetti on. But it is England in control. It does not look likely that there will be a repeat of the last-minute Colombia equaliser today.

65’ SWE 0-2 ENG

Two changes for Sweden. 

Olsson comes off the bench to replace Forsberg. Also, Guidetti replace Toivonen.

62’ SWE 0-2 ENG

England was threatening to put this game to bed and looks like it has. Lingard picked out an unmarked Dele Alli who heads home from close range. It might just be time to remake One Night in Turin

Sweden responds immediately with Claesson’s shot but Pickford is once again equal to the effort. Previous English campaigns have been undone by a blundering goalie. Not anymore.

59’ SWE 0-2 ENG

Dele Alli! 

Lingard’s ball from the right finds an unmarked Alli, who makes no mistake from a close range on the far post to double England’s lead.

54’ SWE 0-1 ENG

The game has opened up a bit. England are also looking to double their lead with decent attacking movies. Sterling getting into good positions but he has to do more. Harry Kane also need to make more noise.

50’ SWE 0-1 ENG

Marcus Berg’s goalless tournament continues as England once again counts its blessings that it has a goalie of Pickford’s calibre. Sweden has started this half with a show of intent so there’s hope that it will be a better fare than the first period.

47’ SWE 0-1 ENG

SAVE FROM PICKFORD! 

Berg gets a good header inside the box but Pickford pulls off an equally good one-handed save to deny him. Sweden off to a positive start.

46’ SWE 0-1 ENG

Second-half is underway at the Samara Arena.

The first-half stats! 

Stat alert! 

1 - England have lost just one of their 22 World Cup games in which they have been leading at half-time before today (W17 D4), with that sole defeat being the 1970 quarter-final against West Germany. Resolute. #ENG #SWEENG #WorldCup

— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) July 7, 2018

Half-time! SWE 0-1 ENG

Oh dear. Minutes after an offside call saved Sterling’s blushes, he fluffs another one-on-one opportunity. To make matters worse, he refuses to pass to Kane after recovering the ball. England will go up a goal ahead at half-time, though. They would have been encouraged by the space opening up behind the Swedish defence minutes before the interval.

Half-time! SWE 0-1 ENG

Harry Maguire’s header gave England the lead. Sterling could’ve made it two and nothing special in the first 45 minutes from Sweden.

44’ SWE 0-1 ENG

Oh chance! 
 

Henderson with a good long ball to Sterling, who controls it beautifully, but takes bit too much time for his shot and goes out for a corner.

Lewis Hamilton ain’t missing the England game! 

When you’ve just taken #BritishGP 🇬🇧 pole, but @England are on the 📺...@LewisHamilton did say he didn’t want to miss the ⚽️! #BritishGP 🇬🇧 #WorldCup pic.twitter.com/iqiAEdQkRm

— Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team (@MercedesAMGF1) July 7, 2018

40’ SWE 0-1 ENG

Sweden are looking to attack from the right. The idea ls to aim the long balls into the boxes for Berg and Toivonen. So far though, there’s no success.

37’ SWE 0-1 ENG

Two years ago, Maguire watched from the stands as England played out a soul-sucking goalless draw with Slovakia at the Euros in France. No longer traveling as just a fan, the Leicester City has now scored a goal which will at least ensure that there will be no repeat of that forgettable encounter.

The set-piece team!

31’ SWE 0-1 ENG

A goal off a corner, who’s surprised? Sweden will be very disappointed because that was very simple for Harry Maguire. To his credit, he applied plenty of power behind the ball. England is a step closer to its first World Cup semifinal in 28 years.

30’ SWE 0-1 ENG

HARRY MAGUIRE! 

First corner of the match and it belongs to England. Young takes it and Maguire with a thumping header to give the lead to his team.

29’ SWE 0-0 ENG

One can understand why Sweden is showing little creativity in attack. It does not have many players who can be decisive. What is England’s excuse?

27’ SWE 0-0 ENG

After one decent attacking move, things are back to normal. By that I mean a snooze fest. England dominating the possession but that’s about it.

These fans, I tell you! 

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 England vs Sweden 🇸🇪

🏟 "Wenger Out" spotted at Samara Arena

🤣 Only @England fans 👏 pic.twitter.com/JxW2Are0Wc

— SPORF (@Sporf) July 7, 2018

21’ SWE 0-0 ENG

First decent chance for England after 18 minutes. No wonder it is Raheem Sterling with a bit of spark to create an opening for Harry Kane, who dragged his shot wide.

But that seems to be an aberration as it is Sweden which has shown a greater keenness to attack till now.

19’ SWE 0-0 ENG

Finally something has happened.

Sterling surges ahead after beating his marker, passes it to Harry Kane, whose shot is inches wide from the goal.

14’ SWE 0-0 ENG

Since a lot is not happening on the pitch, both sets of fans are keeping themselves engaged in musical entertainment. Since my Swedish isn’t great, I can only tell you that the Three Lions faithful are singing “England’s going all the way” to the tune of “Oh way oh” by Shenandoah Davis. And of course, there is the obligatory “Russia, Russia” chant.

13’ SWE 0-0 ENG

Claesson goes for glory with a long range effort but it’s very very wide.

11’ SWE 0-0 ENG

Not much can be said of Sweden’s attack but it is interesting that Emil Forsberg, their most creative presence, plays on the left. That may come in handy today, as Trippier pushes up on the flank in characteristic fashion. Forsberg will have space to cause damage

7’ SWE 0-0 ENG

Has this match started yet? A very subdued beginning from both sides, as if the warm ups aren’t finished yet.

5’ SWE 0-0 ENG

Slow start to the game. Both teams are bit cautious when it comes to going forward. It’s still early stages though so plenty of time to pick things up.

1’ SWE 0-0 ENG

It’s kick-off at the Samara Arena. Sweden start off the proceedings.

Sweden lines up in a 4-4-2 formation 

It is well known by now that Sweden lines up in a 4-4-2 formation while England will field a 3-5-2 system. It will be interesting to see if the English players can get behind the Swedish defence early on.

National anthems being sung at the moment

Key stats

Only Mexico (57) have played more World Cup games without ever lifting the Trophy than Sweden (50).

Sweden have progressed from each of their last three World Cup quarter-finals – 8-0 against Cuba in 1938 (the biggest win in a World Cup knockout stage match by any team), 2-0 vs Soviet Union in 1958 and 5-4 on penalties after a 2-2 draw against Romania in 1994. 

England are the only team remaining at Russia 2018 who have yet to keep a clean sheet. 

Harry Kane’s six goals have seen him equal the record (with Gary Lineker, 1986) for most strikes by an England player at a single World Cup. Lineker’s six-goal haul in Mexico was enough to win him the adidas Golden Boot.

Team news

England unchanged as Southgate looks to guide the Three Lions to their first semifinal in 22 years. He was a member of the squad which achieved that at home in Euro 96, the tournament which gave us the anthem which nobody seems to be able to stop

Sweden has made two changes. With Mikael Lustig suspended, Emil Krafth at right-back while Seb Larsson is available again. So, he walks into the starting line up at Gustav Svensson’s expension

Captain, leader, legend? Not yet

8 - Harry Kane has scored at least once in all eight of his games as England captain, netting 12 goals in those matches. Leader. #ENG #SWEENG #WorldCup pic.twitter.com/wUpzmAzki5

— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) July 7, 2018

Here’s Rio Ferdinand speaking before of the match

Grasp the opportunity.. go make a name for yourself & bring it home @england 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 #worldcup

🎥 - @bbcsport pic.twitter.com/Sdl6IEjnwN

— Rio Ferdinand (@rioferdy5) July 7, 2018

Stat Alert

25 - This will be the 25th meeting between England and Sweden. England have won eight, drawn nine and lost seven of the previous encounters. Familiar. #SWE #ENG #SWEENG #WorldCup pic.twitter.com/dSUmuskdFh

— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) July 7, 2018

Two changes for Sweden

Emil Krafth replaces suspended Mikael Lustig. Seb Larsson makes his way back into the XI after missing out last match due to suspension. Out goes Gustav Svensson.

England stick with Dele Alli

England are unchanged for their quarter final tie. There were concerns regarding Dele Alli’s fitness but he made it to the starting XI.

The starting XI of both the teams are out

Sweden: Olsen, Krafth, Lindelof, Granqvist, Augustinsson; Larsson, Ekdal, Forsberg, Claesson, Berg, Toivonen.

England: Pickford, Walker, Stones, Maguire, Trippier, Henderson, Young, Lingard, Dele, Sterling, Kane.

Three hours to go! Some stats for you as count down to the first match of the day:

Despite scoring fewer goals, Sweden have had more shots on goal then England at this tournament. They have attempted 18 shots, one more than England.

England have scored nine goals at Russia 2018. Only Belgium on 12 have scored more.

England’s Harry Kane is the top scorer at Russia 2018 so far with six goals. Sweden’s Marcus Berg has had 13 shots on goal during the tournament but has yet to score.

Previous meetings:

In 24 meetings between the sides, England have won eight times and Sweden seven.

Both previous World Cup meetings between the sides have finished in draws, most recently in 2006.

FIFA World Cup 2018: Sweden’s work ethic could be decisive against an England side prone to sloppy moments – Firstposthttps://www.firstpost.com

Pre-match reading:

Read Priyansh’s preview of the Sweden vs England match .

“The hard work has carried Sweden thus far and it may prove to be decisive against an English side prone to sloppy moments. In a traditional sense, the Swedes are more English than England at this World Cup. Their emphasis on work rate and organisation is supplemented by the presence of one supremely talented individual — Emil Forsberg, whose spark and inventive play proved to be crucial in the Round of 16 match against Switzerland.

However, goals are a problem. Strikers Ola Toivonen and Marcus Berg only have a goal between them in this World Cup while every other quarter-finalist scored more than Sweden on its way to the Last Eight. With just six goals in four matches, Andersson’s players may struggle to exploit the weaknesses which lie in the English defence.”

Now let’s shift our focus completely to the Sweden vs England quarter-final.

If “It’s Coming Home” isn’t stuck in you head by now, you clearly live under a rock. 

England, who won the World Cup in 1966, are looking to repeat history in Russia. 

This World Cup could represent the easiest path for them to championship glory but first they need to get past a resolute Sweden.

Here’s what’s in store for us at World Cup on Saturday:

Sweden take on England in the first quarter-final at the Samara Arena at 7.30 pm

Hosts Russia face Croatia later in the day at 11.30 pm at the Fisht Stadium

Before we look forward to the quarters for Saturday, here’s a recap of what happened on Friday

Only five countries have won the World Cup more than once. None of them have a chance to win another this year.

Five-time champions Brazil and two-time champions Uruguay were both eliminated, losing in the quarter-finals. 

Without top scorer Edinson Cavani, Uruguay struggled to respond when France went up on Raphael Varane’s header. And when Antoine Griezmann’s tricky blast from outside the box glanced off Fernando Muslera’s hands and into the net to make it 2-0, scrappy Uruguay were minutes from going home in tears.

Belgium, meanwhile, used a combination of daring, intelligence, resilience and not a little luck to oust Brazil 2-1 in a memorable quarter-final tie on Friday.

Hello and welcome to Firstpost’s live coverage of the 2018 World Cup!

Two semi-final spots have been decided, two to go. 

Stay tuned as we build up to the two matches on Saturday — Sweden vs England and Russia vs Croatia.