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Euro 2020: Sweden versus Ukraine preview

By Ernesto Hernandez

BUCHAREST, ROMANIA - JUNE 21: Andriy Yarmolenko of Ukraine interacts with team mate Oleksandr Karavaev as Andriy Shevchenko, Head Coach of Ukraine looks on after the UEFA Euro 2020 Championship Group C match between Ukraine and Austria at National Arena on June 21, 2021 in Bucharest, Romania. (Photo by Robert Ghement - Pool/Getty Images)
BUCHAREST, ROMANIA - JUNE 21: Andriy Yarmolenko of Ukraine interacts with team mate Oleksandr Karavaev as Andriy Shevchenko, Head Coach of Ukraine looks on after the UEFA Euro 2020 Championship Group C match between Ukraine and Austria at National Arena on June 21, 2021 in Bucharest, Romania. (Photo by Robert Ghement - Pool/Getty Images) /
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Sweden’s midfielder Viktor Claesson (L) and Sweden’s midfielder Gustav Svensson take part in an MD-1 training session at Hampden Park in Glasgow, on June 28, 2021, on the eve of their UEFA EURO 2020 round of 16 football match against Ukraine. (Photo by Paul ELLIS / AFP) (Photo by PAUL ELLIS/AFP via Getty Images)
Sweden’s midfielder Viktor Claesson (L) and Sweden’s midfielder Gustav Svensson take part in an MD-1 training session at Hampden Park in Glasgow, on June 28, 2021, on the eve of their UEFA EURO 2020 round of 16 football match against Ukraine. (Photo by Paul ELLIS / AFP) (Photo by PAUL ELLIS/AFP via Getty Images) /

Sweden and Ukraine set to close out the Euro 2020 round of 16

On paper, the least attractive match of the Euro 2020 round of 16 is the one pitting Sweden against the Ukraine.

The winner of this match will occupy the final spot in the quarterfinals and will face meet either England or Germany.

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Sweden finished first in Group E, beating out Spain in the process. They drew the opener against Spain but could have easily won the game. Alexander Isak caused the Spanish defense all sorts of problems.

They won their next two games against Slovakia and Poland 1-0 and 3-2, respectively. Emil Forsberg has scored three out of Sweden’s four goals in the tournament.

Ukraine finished third in Group C behind the Netherlands and Austria. They lost to Netherlands and Austria but managed to beat North Macedonia and qualify as one the best placed third place teams.

They’ve scored four goals in the competition with Andriy Yarmolenko and Roman Yaremchuk scoring two a piece.

Despite losing to the Dutch, Ukraine showed resolve in the match. They went down 2-0 but came back to tie the game before Netherlands eventually found a winner through Denzel Dumfries.

Something similar could be said for Sweden who hung tough against Spain and were able to overcome giving up a two goal lead against Poland.

Given their performances in the group stage, one could make Sweden the slight favorites. However, the history between them tells a different story.

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This is the fifth time these two sides are meeting with the only win for Sweden coming in a friendly game back in August of 2011. The last time they met in the Euros was in Euro 2012 with Ukraine coming from behind and winning 2-1. Ukraine manager Andriy Shevchenko scored twice on that day.

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