The U.S. Women’s National Team will play Sweden on Nov. 7 at MAPFRE Stadium in Columbus, Ohio (7:30 p.m. ET on FS1 & TUDN), in what will be the first game for newly-appointed U.S. head coach Vlatko Andonovski. The USA is 18-1-3 so far in 2019 and is riding a 21-match unbeaten streak that includes a 2-0 defeat of Sweden that came in the teams’ final group stage match of this summer’s World Cup in France.
Here are five things you need to know about Sweden…
DEFENDERS (6): 2-Jonna Andersson (Chelsea FC, ENG), 4-Hanna Glas (Paris Saint-Germain FC, FRA), 5-Nathalie Björn (FC Rosengård), 6-Magdalena Eriksson (Chelsea FC, ENG), 15-Jessica Samuelsson (FC Rosengård), 23-Emma Kullberg (KIF Örebro)
MIDFIELDERS (2): 9-Kosovare Asllani (CD Tacón, ESP), 22-Michelle De Jongh (Vittsjö GIK)
FORWARDS (10): 7-Madelen Janogy (Piteå IF DFF), 8-Lina Hurtig (Linköpings FC),10-Sofia Jakobsson (CD Tacón, ESP), 11-Stina Blackstenius (Linköpings FC), 13-Julia Karlernäs (Piteå IF DFF), 14-Hanna Bennison (FC Rosengård), 16-Julia Zigiotti Olme (Kopparbergs/Göteborg FC), 18-Pauline Hammarlund (Kopparbergs/Göteborg FC), 19-Anna Anvegård (FC Rosengård), 20-Loreta Kullashi (Eskilstuna United DFF)
Midfielder Kosovare Asllani has 37 career goals, the most on Sweden’s roster. Asllani currently plays for CD Tacón – which will officially become the women’s club for Real Madrid in the summer of 2020 as the Spanish giants make their first foray into women’s professional soccer – in Spain, but has played for the Chicago Red Stars, Paris Saint-Germain, Manchester City and Linkopings. Sweden has world class players in numerous positions, including at goalkeeper with Hedvig Lindahl, who was a finalist for the FIFA Best Goalkeeper of the Year, and up front with Sofia Jakobsson and Stina Blackstenius.
Sweden has played the U.S. 39 times, amassing an overall record of 6-22-11. The teams’ first meeting came in 1987, a 2-1 win for Sweden in Blaine, Minnesota. Most recently, the two nations met in the group stage of the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup, a 2-0 USA win with goals from Lindsey Horan and a Sweden own goal created by Tobin Heath. Before the matchup in France, the teams met for an international friendly on June 8, 2017 in Gothenburg, which ended in a 1-0 U.S. win after midfielder Rose Lavelle’s goal in the 56th minute. The teams also met in the group stage of the 2015 Women's World Cup in Winnipeg which ended in a 0-0 draw and in the quarterfinals of the 2016 Olympics, a 1-1- draw that Sweden went on to win in penalty kicks.
Sweden has begun its qualifying for the 2021 UEFA Women’s Euro, to be staged in England, downing Latvia 4-1 in September, then routing Hungary (5-0) and Slovakia (7-0) in October. Asllani, Blackstenius, Madelen Janogy and Linda Sembrant have each scored twice in qualifying. Nathalie Björn, Magdalena Eriksson, Lina Hurtig, Amanda Ilestedt, Jakobsson, Loreta Kullash, Fridolina Rolfö and Caroline Seger all have scored once.
Sweden and the USA both advanced out of Group F at the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup and both made it to the semifinal round, where the USA beat England 2-1, but Sweden fell to the Netherlands, 1-0. Sweden would go on to defeat England in the Third-Place match for its best finish at a Women’s World Cup since finishing second to Germany at the 2003 tournament.
Sweden’s head coach, Peter Gerhardsson, took over the senior team in 2017, following Pia Sundhage’s departure. His career in football began with his contributions as a U-17, U-19 and U-23 player on multiple Swedish club teams. Gerhardsson transitioned to coaching in 1997 with his management of Bälinge IF. He then went on to lead the U-16 and U-17 Swedish Men’s National Team from 2002-2004, and then manage BK Häcken for seven years.