Reaching the semi-finals of the European Championship thanks to Linda Sembrant’s last-minute goal left Sweden’s footballers emotionally overwhelmed.
It was “total madness,” the winning goal scorer told Swedish broadcaster SVT. The 35-year-old defender from Juventus Turin had shot the Swedes with her goal in the second minute of stoppage time to win 1-0 (0-0) in the quarterfinals against outsiders Belgium.
“Absolutely unbelievable,” said Stina Blackstenius, whose well-played goal was disallowed for offside in the 27th minute after video evidence. Despite their superiority, the favorites struggled to achieve a resounding victory against the bravely fighting and, above all, defensively strong Belgians.
Sweden now against the hosts
“I can’t even describe how it felt, there were so many emotions at once,” Magdalena Eriksson, who is under contract with Chelsea, told the newspaper Dagens Nyheter. “I’ve never felt like crying after a goal, but today I did.” The mental strength and cohesion of the Swedish team is very special.
Sweden was the third team after England and Germany to reach the semi-finals of the European Championship. The 1984 champions now play hosts England in Sheffield on Tuesday to see them through to the final on 31 July at London’s Wembley Stadium. The German team headed by national coach Martin Voss-Tecklenburg meets the winner of the last quarter-final on Saturday evening between defending champions Netherlands and France in Milton Keynes on Wednesday (9:00 p.m.).