France

Les Bleus have been tipped by many to go far this summer but will have to be watchful against a Sweden side looking to regain some pride after two defeats.

French optimism was replaced by general whinging after their opening draw against England, as anyone with an opinion blasted England’s defensive style, but they bounced back to take all three points against Ukraine with a solid 2-0 victory.

That success was all the more impressive given the circumstances surrounding the match, and they clearly coped with the storm delay better than the co-hosts.

They sit at the top of the standings, level with England on four points, and a draw on Tuesday night in Kiev’s Olympic Stadium will be enough to see them through to the last eight.

Defeat would by no means be a disaster, as a Ukraine victory over England could still see them qualify on goal difference depending on the severity of the French loss (Ukraine 5/2 – To Qualify).

But Les Bleus will not be thinking of losing and have the talent to take care of a Swedish outfit who, despite showing some promise, have ultimately disappointed to date in the competition.

They were beaten by a Ukraine side whose coach, Oleg Blokhin, had virtually conceded defeat before a ball had been kicked, before going down to an England side who had been tipped to struggle in Poland and Ukraine.

France showed their true colours against Ukraine last time out and their big players upped the level with the likes of Franck Ribery, Karim Benzema and Yohan Cabaye all excelling.

A repeat display should be god enough to at least come away with the draw they need but they will have to be wary of the threat of Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

Tipped to be a star of the tournament, the AC Milan striker has scored just one goal to date in a losing cause against the east Europeans and he will want to exit the competition on a high.

He was well marshalled by the England rearguard and the French back four will have taken note of that display.

France’s defence is not the strongest and so the Swedes are not without hope of at least bagging one goal to end their participation on a positive note, but they would love to conclude with a win to deflect some of the criticism that is certain to come their way on returning home.

The Scandinavians have led in both their matches to date but have been unable to get over the line and Ibrahimovic and a number of his team-mates made it clear after the England defeat that they thought they were the better side.

Whether or not that is true is open to debate but it is goals that count and the fact that they were unable to stop 35-year-old Andriy Shevchenko and could not deal with the pace of Theo Walcott when he was introduced by Roy Hodgson means they prop up the group and have nothing but pride to play for this week.

They are clearly taking this match seriously as reports claim the entire squad took part in training on Sunday despite the fact that it had been made voluntary by coach Erik Hamren, who remains upbeat about his squad despite their collective failure this time around.

France still have some bridge building to do with the French public after their behaviour at the 2010 World Cup and a decent victory over the Swedes to seal qualification would go a long way.

They are now unbeaten in 23 matches and if that becomes 24 on Tuesday then Laurent Blanc’s men will have achieved the first part of their aim this summer (France 7/1 – Tournament Outright).

Winning the group is vital for the long-term prospects of the side as it would probably mean avoiding Spain in the quarter-finals and so three points will be the target for the 2000 champions.

There have already been a few shocks this summer and Blanc will be keeping his fingers crossed that his men are not involved in another one.

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For many England supporters Saturday night might have been a bittersweet one. While the result and some aspects of the performance will give those who follow the Three Lions hope, there will be others who point to the flaws in their performance. Spain controlled the game from minute one and to see an England side dominated so much at Wembley might have come as a shock to those supporters still living on former glories.

The result papers over the cracks somewhat but Fabio Capello will hope beating the reigning world and European champions will give his England side the confidence boost they need to kick on. The only worry might be England becoming over confident thanks to the win and looking beyond a dangerous Sweden team.

Erik Hamren’s men qualified for Euro 2012 as the best runners-up from the group stage, finishing behind the Netherlands. The Swedes were the only team to take points off the Dutch, beating them 3-2 as they ended up with 24 points from a possible 30 in qualification.

Hamren has a decent squad at his disposal as well, lead by the mercurial Zlatan Ibrahimovic. The AC Milan striker blows hot and cold but when on form can be unplayable and is 15/8 to score at anytime. He should be supported by the likes of Sebastian Larsson, Kim Kallstrom, Johan Elmander and Ola Toivonen. While it isn’t the strongest Sweden squad ever assembled they should have enough to test England.

Capello has admitted he will make eight changes to his starting XI from the one that beat Spain, with Daniel Sturridge (9/2 first goalscorer), Bobby Zamora (9/2), Jack Rodwell, Danny Welbeck (4/1), Kyle Walker and Scott Carson all in the frame. Capello proved on Saturday that you can mix and match when it comes to your team selection but throwing so many youngsters into the fray could prove to be a mistake.

England fans will certainly expect a more open game on Tuesday, Capello admitting he had to play defensively against Spain given their quality. A more open game could suit both sides, with Sweden having failed to score on Saturday for the first time in 11 matches as they lost to Denmark 2-0.

The Swedes will hope they can raise their game for the clash with England, a fixture they have traditionally done well in having not tasted defeat since 1968. The last time the two nations met was in the group stages of the 2006 World Cup, Steven Gerrard and Joe Cole with the goals for England in the 2-2 draw.

The draw at 13/5 might be the result to go for if history is to repeat itself, with eight of the last 12 matches between the two countries having ended all square. England will be expected to win but Sweden have proven they have the Three Lions’ number over the years and could do so once again.

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