Amanda Ilestedt, the newly established center-back, added her fourth goal of the tournament to steer our Swedish trio into the World Cup semi-finals.
Sweden’s triumphant 2-1 victory over Japan guarantees a fresh name on this year’s coveted trophy, as all previous winners (United States, Germany, Japan, and Norway) encountered untimely eliminations.
Japan’s entrance into the quarter-finals exuded remarkable form, with an unblemished record in the group stage and a dismissal of Norway in the round of 16. Nonetheless, Peter Gerhardsson’s Swedish contingent magnificently rose to the challenge. Stina Blackstenius’ aggressive pressing posed an imminent threat from the outset, and our striker came tantalizingly close to initiating the scoring, albeit being directed wide.
Sweden claimed a well-earned advantage late in the first half, courtesy of Kosovare Asllani’s delivery of a profound free-kick into the area. Japan struggled to dispel the threat, and Ilestedt, positioned adeptly within the six-yard box, capitalized on the opportunity, emphatically firing home her fourth goal of the competition.
With the Swedes firmly in control, a penalty expertly converted by Man City’s Filippa Angeldal doubled the lead in the second half. Yet, late-stage drama unfolded as Japan was controversially awarded a penalty, which Riko Ueki unfortunately failed to convert.
Japan persisted in their pursuit of a comeback. Aoba Fujino’s well-executed free-kick struck the crossbar and narrowly avoided crossing the line via a deflection from Zecira Musovic, leaving the scoreline unchanged at 2-0.
In the 87th minute, Futoshi Ikeda’s squad managed to pull one back through West Ham’s Honoka Hayashi. Despite a prolonged ten minutes of added time, the Swedish defense demonstrated unwavering resilience, securing their spot in the semi-finals against Spain.
By – Sahiba Suri