and Austria will battle it out for the top two spots in Group F of the UEFA EURO 2024 qualifiers on Tuesday night. Sweden are just four points adrift of their Austrian rivals at the top of the table after thrashing Estonia at the weekend, but will face a huge challenge if they lose.
Sweden are currently third in Group F, having lost twice in three games and are only two points above hosts Estonia. However, they won their crucial European Championship qualifier in Tallinn by a massive 5-0 margin to rekindle their hopes of a top-two finish.
After the end of the Ibrahimovic era, Sweden's new generation of strikers scored three goals in the first half for their team, including Viktor Gyokeres, Dejan Kulusevski and Alexander Isak, whose outstanding performances put Sweden three goals up at the break. Sweden also thrashed Azerbaijan 5-0 in March this year, but lost after failing to score a goal against Austria and...
Under the current circumstances, Sweden are in danger of missing out on Europe's top international competition for the first time since Euro 1996. Their performance in the recent UEFA Nations tournament has damaged their hopes of reaching the final through the play-offs. This time, a defeat against Austria will leave Sweden's top two positions largely out of reach.
By contrast, Austria currently occupy second place in the table and are level with leaders Belgium, and after halfway through the campaign, their solid squad has them looking to be on a steady track heading into the tournament. On Thursday, they extended their unbeaten run with a 1-1 draw in a friendly against Moldova as part of their journey towards a third consecutive Europa League final.
Against Moldova, although Austria fell behind in the third minute, a number of changes to the side after the break, including the introduction of Real Madrid star Alaba, allowed them to equalize in the 50th minute through Michael Gregoritsch. However, Austria will need to step up a gear if they are to effectively beat Sweden on Tuesday.
Judging from the recent performance of the two teams, Austria has a slightly better record than Sweden in all competitions, and also has an advantage in the historical record of fighting. However, Sweden's performance at home should not be underestimated, and their attacking force is quite powerful. Therefore, this match has the potential to be a dramatic duel.
Although the two teams are neck and neck, Austria still have the advantage as they know that a draw will further cement their dominance in the qualifiers. If Sweden can utilize their attacking power to the fullest, then they are likely to come away with a crucial victory, but Austria has a wealth of experience and intelligence, and they will likely hold on until the end to earn a valuable point. To summarize, it is expected that the result of this match may be Sweden 1-1 Austria.
