Swedes respect England but not overawed by their last-eight rivals

Larsson trusts in strong team ethic

Gelendzhik – Sweden’s strong collective are aiming to make life difficult for their more illustrious English counterparts when the two sides meet in their World Cup quarterfinal clash tomorrow.

The Swedes trained at their hotel on the Black Sea before departing for Samara where they will face England in their first World Cup last eight match since 1994, when they came third in the tournament.

“All we [can] do is focus on our own game. We’ve proven to other people and to ourselves that when we’re at the right level we can make it very difficult for teams, and we’re not going to try to do anything else against England,” midfielder Sebastian Larsson told reporters.

Larsson has spent his adult life in England playing for a variety of clubs in England’s top two divisions, and with a move back to Sweden and AIK already secured, this might be the last English fans get to see of the 33-year-old.

“It’s a game I’m really looking forward to, it’s the quarterfinals of the World Cup and for me to be going up against England, the country where I spent 17 years, it’s obviously a little bit special,” he said.

“We’ve got huge respect for England, they’ve got quality players all over the pitch, they’re a good team, but for us, like we have been doing for most of this tournament, we’re trying to focus mostly on ourselves.”

After knocking Italy out in a qualification play-off, the Swedes won a group containing world champions Germany before defeating Switzerland in the last 16, but England will be a step up. –