Italy-Sweden eve, the words of Milena Bertolini and Barbara Bonansea

Italy-Sweden eve, the words of Milena Bertolini and Barbara Bonansea

This is how, on the eve of the Wellington match against the Swedes for the second day of the World Cup, Italdonne coach Milena Bertolini judges the Azzurri’s rivals coming, like Italy, from a victory in the first round of the group stage.

“Sweden is a complete team, they don’t have a particular strength, they have great physicality, in my opinion they have physical intensity and also technical intensity with important individualities inside, it’s the whole thing. One aspect we have to improve on is ball management,” the coach says again, “being able to manage the ball better even against a very intense team. This is the aspect in which we will have to be good.”

Of the Swedes, Barbara Bonansea also speaks of the Swedes, to say that “they never stop even if they are playing badly, even if they make mistakes they always continue to play their game, and this is a great characteristic of theirs.” “For me the important thing is to win,” she adds, “and who scores is not important, although for a striker to score a goal is a great feeling.

Sweden is one of the favorites for the world podium and perhaps even for the title: in 2019 it lost in the semifinals to the Netherlands and then beat England for third place, by which it was instead swept in the semifinals at the last European Championships. At the 2020 Tokyo Games it finally made it to the final where it was mocked on penalties by Canada.