Sweden vs England Betting Preview

The clash between Sweden and England is an interesting one because if the Three Lions beat the Swedes to nil, and Trinidad & Tobago score at least two goals and beat Paraguay, then the Caribbean side will go through as runners-up and Lars Lagerback's men will be packing their bags.However, I don't think this will be the case. Although they failed to beat T&T whereas England beat that side 2-0, I for one believe that Sweden have been much the better side of the two going forward - they have looked far more dangerous then Sven's men when it comes to attacking flair.Given that Wayne Rooney will be starting this match, though, this may be about to change. Fact is, when Crouch and Owen play together up front England lose that added dimension that Rooney brings to the side.Unlike the aforementioned duo, the Man Utd striker is adept at dropping deep and making things happen, carving out how own opportunities rather than being completely reliant on a supply of ammunition from midfield, which is the case with Crouch and Owen.But whether Rooney will be at his peak on what will be his first start since recovering from his well documented injury is anyone's guess. Chances are, he'll make an impact and leave his indelible mark on the game, although I still don't think England will collect three points from this fixture.The Swedes have much more to play for and they will go into this match in the knowledge that, in the ten encounters they have had with England, they have never been beaten. Indeed, six of those matches resulted in victories for Sweden, the most recent being a 1-0 win in a friendly in March 2004, and four ended all square.I expect the Scandinavians to take this game to England with Ibrahimovic, Larsson and their match winner against Paraguay, Freddie Ljungberg, all likely to come out with all guns blazing. The question is, however, will they be able to penetrate England's watertight defence? I'm not so sure, therefore reckon that this match could potentially result in a goaless draw, about which Betfred are offering tempting odds of 11/2.Three of their ten meetings have resulted in stalemates, and given the group standings, this match has all the hallmarks of being yet another - both sides will be mindful of the threat that the other poses and the most important thing for either side is that they don't lose. Defeat for Sweden could mean that their next trip will be to Stockholm, while a reverse for England would mean that they won't top the group and that they will have blotted their copybook.Plus, if Germany beat Ecuador in their Group A match earlier in the day, then by winning their group England will swerve the hosts in the next round and take on the Ecuadorians. This, I'm sure, will be a much more appealing task for Sven's men than having to tackle Jurgen's charges in their own backyard.