Sweden must beat Malta today to maintain their slim hope of reaching the World Cup finals after losing a crucial qualifying match to group leaders Denmark.
The Swedes are in fourth spot in Group 1 and on the verge of being eliminated so anything but a victory against Malta would be disastrous for coach Lars Lagerback’s team.
Lagerback has called up Swedish league top scorer Tobias Hysen of IFK Goteborg after veteran striker Henrik Larsson left the squad following Saturday’s 1-0 loss to Denmark because of the death of his brother.
Hysen — the son of former Liverpool defender Glenn Hysen — is likely to start on the bench with Inter’s Zlatan Ibrahimovic leading the attack with either Marcus Berg of Groningen or Bolton’s Johan Elmander.
Malta come to Ullevi stadium in Goteborg with nothing but pride to play for, having lost six of seven matches in the qualifying campaign. Their only point came in a 0-0 draw with Albania.
“We will have full respect and not underestimate them,” Lagerback said.
A missed penalty and a defensive error saw Sweden drop three points to the Danes on Saturday.
A win against Malta would leave Sweden trailing Denmark by seven points and second-placed Hungary by four.
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