Brazil hold Sweden to draw

By HUXLEY LOVAI
BRAZIL drew 1-1 with Sweden in the U20 women’s soccer World Cup final group A match last night at the PNG Football Stadium but progressed to the knockout stages.
Needing only a draw to progress, the South Americans showed their grit to hold a resilient Sweden to the stalemate.
With progression at stake, both teams did not shy away from the hard challenges from the first whistle, playing possessive football, patiently stringing passes together and trying to find an opening in the opponent’s defence.
It was Sweden’s Stina Blackstenius who scored the opening goal in the 13th minute from a corner kick, heading the ball past the Brazilian keeper.
The Swedes continued to threaten the Brazilian goal as forwards Blackstenius and captain Anna Oskarsson made piercing runs into Brazilian territory.
However, the Brazilian back four closed down the Swedish advances, keeping their team in the contest. The Brazilians scored next to equalise through midfielder Gabi Nunes, who demonstrated her fancy footwork to the cheers of the crowd.
“We made improvements throughout the tournament since our first match against North Korea, that is the most important thing for this group of young women,” Swedish coach Calle Barrling said.
“It was an even game against Brazil, we could have won this game definitely. Our girls played tactically better than Brazil, and were technically as good as Brazil.”