Potter’s Sweden rebuild to continue after World Cup exit
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VANCOUVER, July 1 : Sweden’s World Cup came to an abrupt and inevitable end at the hands of Kylian Mbappe and a French side who are among the favourites to win the whole tournament, but after treading a rocky road to get to the finals, the path forward has become a little clearer for Graham Potter and his team.
In truth, little was expected of a squad lacking the kind of defenders who might strike fear into a world-class attack, and though Potter still had memorable moments with a team in transition, there is still plenty of work left to do.
Last October, Swedish football was arguably at its lowest point since the 1990 World Cup, when they suffered three consecutive 2-1 defeats to crash out at the group stage. Four games into qualifying for this year’s event, they had one point and were bottom of their group.
That prompted drastic action as coach Jon Dahl Tomasson, a Dane viewed with great scepticism by the Swedish soccer public, was dismissed and Potter, who had been sacked by Premier League side West Ham United, came to the rescue.
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He steered them through the remaining qualifying games before successfully using the playoff lifeline provided by their performance in the UEFA Nations League.
Playoff wins over Ukraine and Portugal, and a 5-1 victory over Tunisia in their first group game gave Swedish fans a taste of summer they could scarcely have dreamed of under Tomasson, but their defensive problems remain.
A 5-1 drubbing by the Netherlands brought them crashing back down to earth, and a nervy draw with Japan was required to see them into the knockout round, where they were steamrollered by France.
SYMPATHETIC FIGURE
Having made his name at Swedish club Ostersunds, Potter comes across as a sympathetic figure with a deep understanding and respect for Swedish football, and his players have responded well to his methods during his short reign.
The return of Dejan Kulusevski, who has been out of action for more than a year due to a knee injury, would be an enormous boost to Potter, and the likes of Williot Swedberg and Roony Bardghji are also waiting in the wings.
The biggest issue facing Sweden’s English coach is to restore the teak-tough back line that has always been key to their success, and while he has plenty of talented attackers to choose from, things are looking thinner on the defensive side.
Potter has shown an ability to be flexible, changing his tactics to suit the players he has available, but he will need dominant defenders to emerge if he is to restore Sweden to their previous status as a team who can go toe-to-toe with the world’s best on their day.
Source: Reuters
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