No separating England and Sweden
Friday 10 February 2006
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Rachel Unitt in action against Sweden (©Getty Images)
England's closely-fought rivalry with Sweden continued as their two friendly matches in Cyprus ended 0-0 and 1-1. The sides met at UEFA WOMEN'S EURO 2005™, where the Swedes prevailed 1-0.
Carney miss
The first game, which took place in Larnaca on Tuesday, saw plenty of action but no goals. Karen Carney had the best chance of a first half dominated by England, heading over after Eniola Aluko beat her marker Frida Östberg down the right and floated a cross to the back post. Aluko and Casey Stoney also missed presentable opportunities before Sweden took control of the game after the break. Midway through the second half Lotta Schelin produced a mesmerising piece of skill to mutmeg Stoney on the by-line and pull the ball back for Victoria Svensson, who sliced her shot badly. Two minutes later Schelin was involved again, blazing over from eight metres after meeting a cross from substitute Johanna Almgren.
France summit
Despite England's lack of cutting edge, France coach Elisabeth Loisel would have been impressed by what she saw. The two countries face off at Ewood Park on 26 March in a crucial FIFA Women's World Cup qualifier. Sweden travel to face group rivals the Czech Republic on 22 April. Sweden made nine changes for Thursday’s match in Achna, and the newcomers wasted no time making a positive impression. Maria Aronsson scored the opening goal in the fifth minute after an excellent pass from Svensson.
Rapid response Unitt
However, the Swedes' lack of experience began to tell as England came back into the game. The 63rd-minute introduction of Stoney seemed to cause confusion in the Swedish defence and less than a minute later a long set-piece fell to Rachel Unitt, who drilled in her fourth international goal. "I don't really think we performed in the first half and it was to the players' great credit that they turned the game around," said England coach Hope Powell.
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