Sweden vs South Korea Predictions, Betting Tips and Match Previews

Two years ago Sweden’s talisman, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, retired from international football after their elimination from Euro 2016. Many Swedes worried about their national team after this, but it turns out that those worries were unnecessary.

Without Ibrahimovic they actually seem to have improved as a team, and they showed that in qualifying. They finished four points adrift of group winners France, but finished above Netherlands to set up a playoff clash with Italy. Obviously they were underdogs there too, but they pulled off a shock 1-0 aggregate win to progress to their first World Cup since 2006.

Drawn in a group alongside world champions Germany, Mexico, and South Korea they have little chance of winning the group, but a second place finish is entirely possible for the Swedes. Winning this game is almost a necessity though.

Admittedly Sweden don’t come into this match in the greatest of form, drawing both of their warm-up friendlies 0-0. However, they have only lost three of their last ten matches and they will be a difficult side to break down here. South Korea are the weakest side in this group in terms of raw talent, so Sweden will be aiming for a win.

Fortunately for the favourites, South Korea aren’t in great form either. They lost in their final warm-up friendly against Senegal, following on from a draw against Bolivia earlier in the week. They also lost to Bosnia-Herzegovina at the start of June, and have now only won one of their last six games.

All things considered we think that Sweden have a great chance to get off to a winning start here. They are the more talented side and have proven they know how to win in qualifying. We’re backing a Sweden Win here, along with a 1-0 correct score predictions.

Marcus Berg has been the man to step up to the plate since Ibrahimovic retired. The Al Ain striker may only have 18 goals in 57 international appearances, but many of those saw him playing a supporting role to Ibrahimovic. This qualifying campaign saw him net an impressive eight goals, and we like the look of him to score anytime on Monday.

Sweden Predicted Lineup: Olsen, Lustig, Lindelof, Granqvist, Olsson, Larsson, Ekdal, Durmaz, Forsberg, Berg, Toivonen

South Korea Predicted Lineup: S. Kim, Lee, Jang, Y. Kim, Park, Ki, Jung, Moon, Lee, S. Kim, Son