Sweden vs Bulgaria
European Qualifiers – 2018 World Cup
Date: Monday, 10th October 2016
Kick-off: 19:45 UK
Venue: Friends Arena (Solna).
Luxembourg is coming off a highly disappointing 3-4 loss to Bulgaria in their tournament-opener last Sep. 6 in a match held on the road at the Vasil Levski National Stadium in Sofia, as per Soccerway.
Bulgaria forward Dimitar Rangelov opened the scoring at the 16th minute of the contest, but the two teams went scoreless until the hour mark.
However, floodgates were opened from the 60th-minute mark onwards as both teams scored three goals each for the rest of the match.
Team captain Aurelien Joachim leveled the count at the stroke of the hour and immediately followed it up with a second goal two minutes later to give the lead to head coach Luc Holtz's side.
Bulgaria was quick to retaliate, though, as midfielder Marcelinho made it 2-2 at the 65th while Spartak Moscow forward Ivelin Popov claimed back the lead for the Lions.
Schalke II striker Florian Bohnert found the equalizer in stoppage time, making it a 3-3 count to try and salvage a draw, but the hosts nailed the winner a minute later, courtesy of a shot from Crotone winger Aleksandar Tonev.
Meanwhile, Sweden settled to a 1-1 draw with the Netherlands at their home stadium of Friends Arena in Solna also on Sep. 6, Goal reported.
Striker Marcus Berg scored the opening goal at the 43rd minute for the hosts before Galatasaray midfielder Wesley Sneijder netted the equalizer at the 67th to force the tie and a share of a point in the overall standings.
Head coach Janne Andersson is now without Swede superstar Zlatan Ibrahimović, who retired from international competitions right after the summer's Euro 2016 tourney. The team is now captained by Krasnodar defender Andreas Granqvist.
Sweden vs Bulgaria: Head to Head Statistics
- Both teams have met 12 times in the past, with Sweden having most of the wins.
- Sweden have won 8 games against Bulgaria and lost 2 games.
- At home, Sweden have won 6 games against Bulgaria and lost 1.
- Sweden have scored a total of 22 goals (17 at home soil) against Bulgaria and conceded 6 goals (2 at home soil).
Sweden vs Bulgaria: Prediction
Both teams have been on a fluctuating form in their recent games, but Sweden seem to be slightly better in shape.Since after Sweden’s poor outing in the Euro Championship, they have bounced back to life. They are unbeaten in their 2 games so far with a win and a draw. Though Sweden seem to be good defensively conceding 4 goals from 5 games, they also have a scoring problem. Sweden have scored just 3 goals in their last 5 games.
Bulgaria have been on the receiving end of late, they have lost 3 of their last 5 games and won 2. Their defense seem to be their weakest point, they have conceded a total of 18 goals in their last 5 games.
I’m on Sweden’s side, as i expect them to grab a home win.
Sweden vs Bulgaria: Tips
- Both Teams to Score and Sweden to win at 3.75
- Over 2.5 goals at 2.00.
