Sweden praise for Southgate’s boys

SAMARA: Sweden coach Janne Andersson said England are capable of winning the World Cup after seeing his side beaten 2-0 by Gareth Southgate’s side in the quarter-finals on Saturday. “Yes, I definitely believe they are,” Andersson responded when asked if England were good enough to win the tournament. “They’re strong and wellorganised. I’d like to pay tribute to both the team and the coach.

“They’re a good football side, they don’t give a lot of openings. I believe they are perfectly capable of going all the way.”

“It was a very mature performance in such a high pressure game.

“We knew we would have lots of possession but I thought we controlled it well and we moved it quickly,” said England captain Harry Kane.

MATURE ENGLAND

In the past England have struggled against opponents who have been content to sit behind the ball and defend, but this team have the patience, technique and what Southgate called the “mental resilience” to keep probing without over-committing.

“We played an opponent who have a clear identity and their collectiveness has been too much at times. After having to give everything emotionally this week, today was a real test,” said Southgate.

“It was a sign of the maturity of this team who are maturing in front of our eyes,” he said.

“We had to withstand a lot of physical pressure,” said Southgate.

“The resilience of the team and togetherness of the team today was crucial. Today our spirit was as good as theirs and our quality a little bit better.”