Sweden vs. Ukraine 6/29/21 Euro Cup 2021 Soccer Pick, Odds, and Prediction

Sweden and Ukraine are clashing at Hampden Park in the Round of 16 in the Euro Cup 2021. Sweden has qualified to the Round of 16 from the top spot of their group, and they are the favorites in this game. Ukraine has only 1 win so far in this tournament, but it was enough for them to qualify because of the goal difference.

Sweden is in amazing form, and they are now undefeated in their last 7 games while winning 6 of those 7 games. Sweden has scored 4 goals in 3 games while conceding only 2, and they have been one of the best defensive teams in the tournament so far. Sweden was playing against Poland in the last round of the group stage, and they have had only 33% of ball possession, 4 shots on goal, 6 corner kicks, 2 big chances created, and only 56% of the correct passes. This was their weakest game of the tournament, but they were fortunate because Poland had to attack, and that left a lot of space behind them, which Sweden used. Sweden has won this game 3-2 with a goal in the last minute. Forsberg is the leading goalscorer for Sweden with 3 goals. Kulusevski has added 2 assists. Sweden is on a fantastic run, and they are looking well, but they need their solid defense back, otherwise, it will be hard for them to qualify for the next stage.

As I mentioned earlier, Ukraine got really lucky, and the only team they beat in the group stage was North Macedonia. Thanks to a better goal difference, Ukraine has qualified to the Round of 16 with only 3 points. Yarmolenko and Yaremchuk are the leading goalscorers for Ukraine with 2 goals each, while they both added 1 assist. Karavaev and Malinovskyi also added 1 assist each. In their last game against Austria, Ukraine has had 50% of ball possession, only 1 shot on goal, 4 corner kicks, 0 big chances created, and a decent 82% of the correct passes. With a draw, Ukraine would have been a safe traveler to the Round of 16, and they were going for that score, but Austria has scored in the 21^st minute, and Ukraine has lost this match 0-1. Ukraine isn’t a bad team, and they don’t need much space to score a goal or two, but their defense has been sloppy and unsafe. Ukraine got lucky with the Round of 16 draw, and even though Sweden is the better team, Ukraine can get a win in this one.

It’s been a lot of years since these two teams played a game against each other, but the trends are slightly on Ukraine’s side. We saw that Sweden can be pressured and make mistakes on the defensive end, but Ukraine will need to put more focus on their defense as well here. I think this game could go to the overtime, but I will stick to goals because I don’t think either team has the defense to stop the other one.