Euro 2016 Odds – Sweden vs Russia
On Thursday, October 9, Sweden will host Russia at the Friends Arena just north of Stockholm at 14:45 ET. On paper, this is the best game among Group G’s second fixtures, as Sweden and Russia project to finish first and second in the group.
Sweden and Russia have met four times previously, and the Swedish squad leads the series (2W, 1D, 1L). The odds for the game are fairly even, but the home Swedes enter as slight favorites. In the money line, a Sweden win is listed at +150, a Russia win is at +200, and the draw is listed at +200.
Sweden started qualification by drawing Austria (1-1) in Vienna. After the match, the Swedish captain, Zlatan Ibrahimović, said he was satisfied with the result.
“I think it was a good point today. It was a difficult game. Last time we were here, we lost. Today we did better. We were ready for the game, we take one point with us, and we are satisfied,” said Ibra.
In Russia’s first fixture, the Sbornaya cruised past Liechtenstein at home 4-0. Despite, the victory, head coach Fabio Capello said his team needs to take advantage of their goal opportunities.
“It was a good game. Unfortunately, we didn’t take all of our chances. We had plenty of goal scoring opportunities, a number of positive moments. To advance and progress as a team we need to train more regularly. We create opportunities, but I think we need to improve how we win the ball back,” said Capello.
After the first slate of games, Russia is in second place in Group G with three points and a +4 goal differential; Sweden is in third place with one point after its draw against Austria. Montenegro and Moldova round out the group of six.
Zack is a tour guide whose favorite sports are football, baseball, and golf. He enjoys giving obnoxious commentary during games and hopes to some day write a book about sports. His favorite underdog victory was the Diamondbacks beating the Yankees in game 7 of the World Series.
