Belgium striker Romelu Lukaku. (Photo : Getty Images)
Winless team Sweden (0-1-1, 1 point) is scheduled to take on world no. 2 Belgium (1-1-0, 3 points) in the third and final round of Group E competitions in the 2016 UEFA European Championship. The match will be held at the Allianz Riviera in Nice on June 22, Wednesday.
The Swedes are having a tough time in the Euros this summer as team captain Zlatan Ibrahimović has not found his top form as of late, failing to score in the first two rounds of matches.
A loss to Belgium means elimination from the next round, but a draw or win could give them the chance to advance in the knockout stages of the tourney so it is still not too late for the Paris Saint-Germain striker to show up.
Sweden was nipped by Italy, 0-1, in their second round matchup last Friday at the Stadium Municipal in Toulouse for actually their first loss in the tournament, SkySports reported.
Head coach Erik Hamrén's boys surprised Gli Azzurri in the match as they prevented them from scoring for the first 88 minutes of the contest despite the Italians vaunted strikers. In fact, it could have gone their way if not for the superb defense of Juventus goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon, who had so far led Italy to two clean sheets in this summer's Euros.
However, Inter Milan goalscorer Eder had eventually scored the winning goal at the 88th to hand Blågult their first loss.
Meanwhile, Belgium started slow in the tourney with a 0-2 loss to Italy during their opener, but was able to bounce back and flex their muscles versus the Republic of Ireland in the second round, 3-0, last Saturday at the Nouveau Stade de Bordeaux in Bordeaux, as per The Guardian.
Everton striker Romelu Lukaku led head coach Marc Wilmots' side with a brace at the 48th and 70th minutes, sandwiching winger Axel Witsel's 61st minute goal to complete De Rode Duivels' three-goal haul in the contest.
It was a wake up game for the Belgians, who also have world-class footballers Eden Hazard of Chelsea, Kevin De Bruyne of Manchester City, Yannick Carrasco of Atletico Madrid, and Radja Nainggolan of Roma, to name a few, in their lineup. The team is actually one of those predicted to advance at least in the semifinals of the tournament.
The predicted result is another 3-0 rout for Belgium.
Sweden starting lineup (4-4-2 formation): Isaksson; Lindelof, Johansson, Granqvist, Olsson; Larsson, Ekdal, Kallstrom, Forsberg; Guidetti, Ibrahimović
Belgium starting lineup (4-2-3-1 formation): Courtois; Meunier, Alderweireld, Vermaelen, Vertonghen; Witsel, Dembélé; Hazard, De Bruyne, Carrasco; Lukaku
