The first round of group stage matches at Euro 2012 come to a close in Kiev where co-hosts Ukraine will take on tournament dark host Sweden. As the co-hosts, Ukraine have high expectations, but they do have to fight that little problem of not being very good. That could complicate things.
Ukraine Vs. Sweden, Euro 2012: Lineups
What will also complicate things is Zlatan Ibrahimovic. Does Ukraine have the defense to neutralize him? Not a chance. There might not be any team in the tournament who could stop him so Ukraine certainly can't. Meanwhile, Sweden also have Ola Toivonen and an underrated midfield, which will make things extraordinarily tough on Ukraine. Unless Andriy Shevchenko can turn back the clock, this one could get ugly and ruin the co-hosts' day.
Ukraine (4-4-2): Andriy Pyatov; Oleh Gusev, Yevhen Khacheridi, Tara Mykhalyk, Yevhen Selin; Anatoliy Tymoshchuk; Andriy Yarmolenko, Serhiy Nazarenko, Yevhen Konoplyanka; Andriy Shevchenko, Andriy Voronin
Sweden (4-3-3): Andreas Isaksson; Mikael Lustig, Olof Mellberg, Andreas Granqvist, Martin Olsson; Sebastian Larsson, Kim Källström, Rasmus Elm; Markus Rosenberg, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Ola Toivonen
We’ll have live coverage in our Ukraine vs. Sweden, Euro 2012 StoryStream. For more on Euro 2012 and the entire world of football, follow @SBNationSoccer on twitter.
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