Key events
8 mins: Olise is the latest player to be fouled. There have been a few niggly fouls early on to disrupt France. It will be interesting to see how many the referee lets go before getting his cards out.
6 mins: It is rather hot in New Jersey, so the hydration break will at least will be well-deserved today.
Everyone in yellow is currently behind the ball. Sweden win it back in their own half and unleash their cunning plan of sending it up the pitch and allowing Elanga to chase. It works but France regroup and close him down.
4 mins: Ally McCoist is not a fan of the pitch. Suggests it’s an underwhelming surface.
Sweden at the ball forward quickly and it reaches Isak on the edge of the box but his shot is deflected into the arms of the goalkeeper.
Dembele has his first real involvement but that is curtailed by a foul.
2 mins: Digne is caught by Bergvall and offers a little scream to prove he’s been fouled.
Looks more like a 4-4-2 from Sweden at the moment with Elanga on the right of midfield.
Kick off
Peep! Peep! Peep! Here we go!
Justin Kavanagh is not confident of any wizardry from the Swedes. “I don’t think even Harry Potter would be able to conjure up a win for the Swedes tonight,” he says.
Here come the players!
Richard Hirst suggests: “Although I live in France and am therefore constitutionally obliged to support France I think this writing off of Sweden is a bit premature. I see at least extra time.”
It’s quite late for people working on this game in the UK, so let’s try and avoid that.
Julian Menz lands in the inbox once more: “Some early signs of cautious optimism/the Hembränt (moonshine) kicking in here. It’s probably going to get a bit interesting if Sweden score, but it’s not my stuga.
“That Swedish team is good enough to bother most teams at the WC, but France is one step too far. Swedes seem to have a keen sense of irony though, and realise that they have more wins in the WC than they collected during qualifying.
“For anyone who doesn’t understand the Swedish national anthem btw, it’s typically optimistic, and ends with ‘I want to die in the North’.”
Peter Oh emails: “The Sweden women’s team achieved a third-place finish at their last World Cup, in 2023. Could you ask Julian if he and his bit-chomping Swedish comrades reckon that the achievement will be matched by the Menz, I mean, men’s team?”
I am suspicious Mbappe will be top of this list come full-time.
Colin Livingstone gets in touch to say: :As an Evertonian, I wince every time I hear name of Digne or see his photo, due to the pain of losing such a talented player thanks to the ineptitude of a complete clown of a manager.
“The whole managerial merry-go-round of failure is so baffling.”
Glory days.
Kylian Mbappe is primed.
Julian Menz emails: “I’m sat here in the middle of Sweden with a bunch of heavily fortified Swedes. The mood is what it must have felt like when the aristocrats were queuing up for the Guillotine.
”Hope springs eternal though!”
Matan emails: “Do you give Sweden a prayer today? France could be got at defensively, but I fear Potter’s side will be crushed by the attacking force of Les Bleus.”
I suspect they will get beaten well but they do have an exciting front three. I fear, however, France will give them the runaround at the other end.
I once shook Lucas Digne’s hand at a Michael Jackson tribute night. That’s my only link to tonight’s match.
Wrap your eyeballs around Football Daily.
Starting lineups
France (4-2-3-1): Maignan; Kounde, Upamecano, Saliba, Digne; Tchouameni, Rabiot; Dembele, Olise, Barcola; Mbappe
Subs: Samba, Risser, Gusto, Konate, T Hernandez, L Hernandez, Lacroix, Kone, Kante, Zaire-Emery, Cherki, Akliouche, Thuram, Doue, Mateta
Sweden (3-4-3): Zetterstrom; Lagerbielke, Lindelof, Gudmundsson; Svensson, Stroud, Bergvall, Ayari; Isak, Gyokeres, Elanga,
Subs: V Johansson, Nordfeldt, H Johansson, Ekdal, Starfelt, Smith, Bernardsson, Nygren, Sema, Karlstrom, Svanberg, Zeneli, Nilsson, Ali
I wonder if Elanga will get a start tonight as Potter may consider the extra pace and trying to give the French full-backs somthing to think about.
Sweden coach Graham Potter has said his team would have to produce something special to beat France.
“They have quality all over… They have won the World Cup before and they have a fantastic manager,” Potter said. “An exciting challenge awaits us, and we will have to play the game of our lives, clearly.”
Elsewhere … Jonathan Wilson was in Dallas to see Norway defeat Cote d’Ivoire and set up a clash with Brazil.
Alexander Isak is in attendance.
Mbappe has been impressive thus far but he still has a couple more gears. Will he show them in this match?
This is ruddy impressive from our creative genius Jonny Weeks.
Pre-match reading.
Preamble
Hello one and all!
After a couple of relative shocks on Monday, Sweden could be eyeing another here tonight. There is plenty of quality in Graham Potter’s squad, with the strike pairing of Alexander Isak and Viktor Gyokeres the envy of many countries. If they can align up top, they will cause a lot of problems.
Unfortunately for Potter et al, France possess Kylian Mbappe, Ousmane Dembele and Michael Olise, forcing a few sleepless nights in the Swedish hotel. Didier Deschamps’s side are the favourites for the tournament in my opinion and they will not be taking their foot off the gas, I am sure.
Let’s hope for a cracker!
