Key events
Julian Mentz hits your inbox again: “Some early signs of cautious optimism/Hembrant (moonshine) are kicking in. It will probably get a little interesting if Sweden scores, but that’s not my thing.
“This Swedish team is good enough to trouble most teams at the World Cup, but France have gone one step too far. The Swedes seem to have a keen sense of irony and understand that they have more World Cup wins than they accumulated during qualifying.
“By the way, for those who don’t understand the Swedish national anthem, it is usually upbeat and ends with the words: “I want to die in the North.”
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Peter O emails: “The Swedish women’s team finished third at their last World Cup in 2023. Could you ask Julian if he and his greedy Swedish comrades think that he and his greedy Swedish comrades can repeat this achievement with the Menz team, I mean the men’s team?
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I suspect Mbappe will be at the top of this list when he becomes a regular player.
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Colin Livingston gets in touch and reports: :As an Everton player, I wince every time I hear Digne’s name or see his picture because of the pain of losing such a talented player due to the incompetence of a complete clown of a manager.
“This whole management merry-go-round of failure is just confusing.”
Glory days.
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Kylian Mbappe is on fire.
Kylian Mbappe goes for a run to warm up. Photograph: Daniela Porcelli/Getty ImagesShare
Julian Mentz emails: “I sit here in the middle of Sweden with a group of well-fortified Swedes. The mood is the same as it must have been when the aristocrats stood in line for the guillotine.
“However, hope is eternal!”
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Matan writes by email: “Are you praying for Sweden today? France may be attacked defensively, but I fear that Potter’s team will be overwhelmed by Le Bleu’s attacking force.”
I suspect they will lose well, but they have an exciting front three. However, I am afraid that France will fight back at the other end.
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I once shook hands with Lucas Digne at an evening dedicated to the memory of Michael Jackson. This is my only link to today’s match.
Lucas Dean enters the stadium. Photograph: Adam Hanger/APShare
Check out Football Daily.
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Starting lineups
France (4-2-3-1): Maignan; Kaunde, Upamecano, Salt, Worthy; Tchouameni, Rabiot; Dembele, Olise, Barcola; Design
Spare parts: Samba, Risser, Gusto, Konate, T. Hernandez, L. Hernandez, Lacroix, Kone, Kante, Zaire-Emery, Cherki, Akliush, Thuram, Douai, Mateta
Sweden (3-4-3): Zetterstrom; Lagerbelke, Lindelof, Gudmundsson; Svensson, Stroud, Bergvall, Ayari; Isak, Giokeres, Elanga,
Spare parts: V. Johansson, Nordfeldt, H. Johansson, Ekdahl, Starfelt, Smith, Bernardsson, Nygren, Sema, Carlström, Svanberg, Zeneli, Nilsson, Ali
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Updated at 4:25 pm ET.
It will be interesting to see if Elanga starts tonight as Potter may be looking at adding some extra pace and trying to give the French backline something to think about.
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Sweden coach Graham Potter said his side will have to create something special to beat France.
“They have quality throughout… They’ve won the World Cup before and they have a fantastic coach,” Potter said. “We have an exciting challenge ahead of us and we will obviously have to play the game of our lives.”
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Elsewhere… Jonathan Wilson was in Dallas to see Norway beat Ivory Coast to set up a clash with Brazil.
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Alexander Isak is present.
Alexander Isak enters the stadium. Photo: Petter Arvidson/BILDBYRÅN/ShutterstockShare
Mbappe has been impressive so far, but he still has a couple more assists. Will he show them in this match?
Kylian MbappeShare
This is very impressive from our creative genius Johnny Weeks.
Valderrama, Chong, Los Angeles Stadium and Maradona. Composite Image: Guardian Picture DeskShare
Updated at 4:26 pm ET.
Pre-match reading.
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Preamble
Hello to one and all!
After a couple of relative shocks on Monday, Sweden can expect another one this evening. There are many good players in Graham Potter’s team, and the strike pair of Alexander Isak and Victor Ghiokere can be the envy of many countries. If they can level off from the top, they will create a lot of problems.
Unfortunately for Potter and his colleagues, France owns Kylian Mbappe, Ousmane Dembele and Michael Olise, forcing several sleepless nights in a Swedish hotel. In my opinion, Didier Deschamps’ team is the favorite of the tournament, and I am sure that they will not slow down.
Let’s hope for a cracker!
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