Elanga led Sweden to the playoffs without knowing the tournament schedules

For the eighth time in its history, the Swedish national team qualified for the play-off stage of the World Cup. In a tense match of the final round of the group stage, the blue and yellow team drew with Japan. This result allowed the team to collect 4 points and finish third in Group F (behind Netherlands and Japan), becoming one of the best teams to qualify from third place. After a scoreless and slow first half, the game picked up considerably. The Japanese took the lead thanks to Daizen Maeda's well-timed strike after a well-timed pass. Nottingham Forest winger Anthony Elanga almost instantly restored parity. The player moved from the right wing to the center and struck a brilliant blow with his "weak" left foot. For Elanga, this goal was already the second in the current tournament. At the end of the meeting, the Swedes could even win, but after Alexander Isak's header, the ball hit the crossbar. The most interesting detail of the match became clear after the final whistle. It turned out that the author of the saving goal was completely unaware of the tournament standings. While the coaching staff, led by assistant Sebastian Larsson, and the bench were frantically calculating combinations and trying to calm the game, the 24-year-old Elanga ignored their cries and rushed into the attack. "I was just yelling, 'Come on, we can score more'. I'm glad we went further, but I didn't know it at the end. I think they (the coaches) were trying to yell at me, but I obviously wanted to keep running. I was cramping at the end, but I didn't want to stop," Elanga admitted after the game. Teammates and head coach Graham Potter reacted to this situation with humor: Alexander Isak (Liverpool striker) admitted that he even had a little fight with Elanga on the field: "He was a bit disappointed towards the end of the match and now you can see why." Graham Potter (head coach) laughed: "That explains a lot.  God bless! But I love him." Victor Lindelof (team captain) ironically added: "He probably wasn't very attentive in the pre-match setup." Success in the match was made possible thanks to Graham Potter's successful rotation after the painful defeat against the Netherlands in the previous round. The coach entrusted Elanza and goalkeeper Jakob Videl Zetterstorm with a place in the starting lineup. "We analyzed the game against the Netherlands. We had to defend the penalty area and the flanks better. We decided to use Jakob's qualities, because his distribution of passes is very impressive. And Anthony creates a threat on counterattacks, his speed destabilizes the opponent," Potter explained his choice. Taking third place, the Swedes avoided a direct meeting with the formidable Brazil team (who will now play Japan). However, their next opponent in the match scheduled for June 30 will still be extremely difficult. Potential opponents of the blue and yellow: Winner of Group I (France or Norway). Group E winner (Germany)