Wednesday night's meeting of Brazil and Sweden at the Arsenal Stadium may have served ostensibly to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the FIFA World Cup final between the countries but the eyes of those involved in the fixture were fixed firmly on the future, not the past.
Assured display
While Brazil teenager Pato gave a glimpse of his startling potential with an opportunist winning goal on his international debut, there were also encouraging signs for Sweden coach Lars Lagerbäck despite the 1-0 reverse, not least in the performance of Birmingham City FC midfielder Sebastian Larsson. This was the Scandinavian side's final outing before Lagerbäck names his squad for UEFA EURO 2008™ on 13 May and Larsson, occupying the right-midfield berth usually filled by Christian Wilhelmsson, enhanced his prospects of inclusion in the final 23 with an assured display on what was only his second international appearance.
'Very clever footballer'
Larsson, who made his Sweden debut in last month's goalless draw with Turkey, earned praise from Lagerbäck for his intelligent approach as well as his dead-ball abilities, which almost produced a goal shortly after the break when his inswinging free-kick brought a save from Brazil goalkeeper Julio César. "He is a very clever footballer and that is a very important quality to have," Lagerbäck told uefa.com after the match. "He is very good in how he reads the game and he is playing for the team all the time, he words hard and has a really good right foot when it comes to corners and free-kicks. He has a lot of qualities and if he continues to work hard for another six months or a year, he could be really good."
Leaving Arsenal
It was fitting that Larsson performed so brightly at the home of Arsenal FC, the club where he began his career prior to joining Birmingham in 2006, first on loan and then on a permanent basis last summer. While benefiting undoubtedly from an education in the Arsenal academy, the 22-year-old - who made three league appearances for the Gunners - believes that the leaving of London has proved the making of him. "It has helped me massively without a doubt," he said. "That is why I took that step as I needed to play regular football and I am delighted to be doing that."
'Fantastic experience'
Larsson, who has made 29 Premier League appearances this term, scoring five times, said it had been a "fantastic experience" facing Brazil and added: "It's been great these two days, I've really enjoyed it and hopefully there is more to come. First of all I want to make sure I get a place in the squad. That is my main aim." Another player with the same goal is Rosenborg BK defender Fredrik Stoor, who got an opportunity to stake his claim for the right-back berth following Erik Edman's cruciate ligament injury. "He was a little bit nervous before the game, he could have attacked a little bit more but I am very satisfied when you consider he was playing his third international and against a team like Brazil," said Lagerbäck, who could always call on the veteran Niclas Alexandersson to fill that position.
Lagerbäck 'satisfied'
Lagerbäck went on to praise the overall defensive performance of a Sweden side which, in Petter Hansson's absence, featured FC Basel 1893's Daniel Majstorovic alongside Olof Mellberg in the centre of the back line. "The way we defended was very good and I am also satisfied with how the players tried to keep the ball – we didn't just try to play on the counterattack." That was down in no small part to impressive contributions by central midfield pair Anders Svensson and Kim Kallström.
Rosenberg chance
Striker Markus Rosenberg, deputising for the injured Zlatan Ibrahimović, will have been less pleased with his night's work, though, after spurning a clear scoring chance in the first half. "We weren't good enough when it came to the final third," Lagerbäck admitted. Yet although the Swedes have now gone three games without a goal, the coach – who has pre-tournament fixtures against Slovenia and Ukraine in which to fine-tune - was not too concerned. "When we have a full squad, I am sure it will come at the EURO."
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