A win is what the "Three Lions" is looking forward to in tonight match against Sweden as the chance to advance at group D is still open for 4 teams.
England started their EURO with a lot of doubt. Fabio Capello resigned in Feb, which was only 4 months prior to the tournament. Roy Hodgson has only been in charge since May, which left him a month or so to prepare for such a big event.
In that short period of time, injury has taken out three key players Frank Lampard, Gareth Barry and Gay Cahill. Plus, Rooney has to seat on the bench for the first two games because of UEFA's ban.
Against all odds, England seems to be stronger at hard time. One match does not say much, but after seeing the way they play against France and the spirit of Steven Gerrard and teammates, the fans are getting their hope up.
Playing as the under dog in the first match, England knows perfectly well their position. However, tonight will require some changes by Hodgson. Caution is still necessary because after all Sweden has Ibrahimovic, but the way they approach the match must be different, to maximize their attacking capacity.
Chamberlain and Milner will be more freed from their defense responsibility and putting pressure on Sweden's wing defender Martin Olsson and Mikael Lustig, who do not receive much confidence from critics. Danny Welbeck with his youth and speed, will create a lot of trouble for veteran Olof Mellberg.
We will see more attacking from England this match?
History leans towards Sweden though. EURO 1992 saw England defeated by 1-2 by the Northern Europe team. 1-0 win in the friendly match this May was the first time England win over Sweden in the last 43 years. The last 7 encounters in World Cup, England lost 2 and drew 5.
Roy Hodgson could be the difference this year for England, as he started his coaching career in Sweden helping Halmstad win two national title.
Our prediction
Sweden depends too much on Ibrahimovic's scoring ability, and Hodgson understands this full well. England's disciplined defense will help them limit Sweden forward. Meanwhile, Three Lions' offense look strong against Sweden's sloppy defense as shown in the match against Ukraine. Our prediction would be a 2-0 win for England
Betting Tips
Let's take a look at 36BOL.com odds for tonight game:
England Asian Handicap (-) 0.5 looks like a solid bet at odds 1.250. If you want to bet on Over/Under, then Under 2.25 at odds 0.92 is a good choice.
For more odds, markets and betting, visit 36BOL Sportsbook
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