Sweden keep believing after grabbing unlikely World Cup ticket

[p]Quarter-finalists in ‌Russia in 2018 when they lost to [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/england/j9N9ZNFA/"]England[/a], the Swedes ‌missed Qatar four years ago and flirted with disaster again for this ‌year's event.[/p][p]Englishman Graham Potter came to the rescue in October ‌2025, replacing sacked Danish coach [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/tomasson-jon-dahl/M5iyzP2o/"]Jon Dahl Tomasson[/a] and steering them to playoff victories over [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/ukraine/j1JtDMwo/"]Ukraine[/a] and [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/poland/2HzmcynI/"]Poland[/a].[/p][p]Their reward was a spot in Group F with [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/tunisia/QqZVYk95/"]‌Tunisia[/a], the [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/netherlands/WYintcWb/"]Netherlands[/a] and [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/japan/ULXPdOUj/"]Japan[/a], and fans have ⁠gone from the hopelessness of ‌Tomasson's reign to remembering the side who came third at the 1994 World ​Cup and hoping for a repeat.[/p][p][b]"We know that it's not easy winning games in international football, but at the ​same time, you have to have a belief that you can win any game,"[/b] Potter told Reuters after selecting his 26-man squad for the ⁠tournament.[/p][p][b]"It's trying to find ​that balance, it's trying to have that humility and that belief, and then within that, there are things that you need to do to win the game."[/b][/p][embed guid="b52b8129-7bff-44b4-a3a4-e95da2ed95c2" url="https://x.com/svenskfotboll/status/2060792549501993215" social-type="twitter" /][h2]"Together as a team"[/h2][p]The key to Potter's success has been taking ‌a one-game-at-a-time approach while simplifying the messages communicated to players.[/p][p][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/tottenham/UDg08Ohm/"]Tottenham Hotspur[/a]'s [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/kulusevski-dejan/fXLqHCYi/"]Dejan Kulusevski[/a] will miss the tournament through injury, so much of the attacking burden will likely fall on the shoulders of strikers [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/gyokeres-viktor/zaBZ1xIk/"]Viktor Gyokeres[/a] and [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/isak-alexander/p41IV42c/"]Alexander Isak[/a], and midfield playmaker [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/bergvall-lucas/th3mAHj9/"]Lucas Bergvall[/a].[/p][p]With their [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/game/soccer/sweden-OQyqbHWB/tunisia-QqZVYk95/?mid=UaJKzaHN"]opener against Tunisia[/a] in Mexico on 14th June followed by a trip across the border to Texas to [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/game/soccer/netherlands-WYintcWb/sweden-OQyqbHWB/?mid=0rAjVxuo"]face the Dutch[/a] and [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/game/soccer/japan-ULXPdOUj/sweden-OQyqbHWB/?mid=Sl2xgtXi"]Japan[/a], getting off to a strong start will be key for the Swedes ‌if they wish to progress to the knockout stage.[/p][p]Tonight (1st June), Blagult [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/game/soccer/norway-8rP6JO0H/sweden-OQyqbHWB/?mid=dOKMzug3"]play the first[/a] of two warm-up matches against [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/norway/8rP6JO0H/"]Norway[/a] in Oslo, before welcoming [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/greece/COuk57Ci/"]Greece[/a] just [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/game/soccer/greece-COuk57Ci/sweden-OQyqbHWB/?mid=nVbellBj"]three days later[/a].[/p][p]Having been at ​the helm for only a handful of games, Potter is ‌keenly aware of how little time he has had to work with his players as they head into arguably the biggest challenge of his coaching career.[/p][p][b]"Are we together as a team, and then are we helping the individuals show their best quality? ⁠I think, if we can ⁠do that, then we've got ‌a chance to be successful,"[/b] Potter said.[/p][p][b][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/soccer/world/world-championship/"]Follow Sweden at the 2026 World Cup on Flashscore.[/a][/b][/p]