It’s top against bottom in Women’s World Cup Group G on Wednesday as high-flying Sweden take on struggling Argentina at Hamilton’s FMG Stadium Waikato.
Heading into the final round of group games, Sweden find themselves three points clear second-placed Italy in Group G, having taken maximum points so far.
At the opposite end of the standings, Argentina and South Africa are locked on one point. Even so, all four teams remain in contention for the knockout phase.
Argentina suffered a 1-0 defeat to Italy in their opening match, with Cristiana Girelli scoring the winning goal in the 87th minute.
Last Friday, the Argentines came from 2-0 down to snatch a draw against South Africa, courtesy of late goals from Sophia Braun and Romina Nunez.
However, given that Argentina racked up 61% possession and 13 shots against South Africa, they will be disappointed to have only drawn that game.
It is worth remembering that Argentina won five of their six friendlies in the lead-up to the World Cup, but they have so far struggled to make an impact on the tournament.
On the flip side, Sweden opened their World Cup account with a 2-1 victory over South Africa, coming from behind thanks to goals from Fridolina Rolfo and Amanda Ilestedt.
The Swedes then thrashed Italy 5-0 in their second match, with Ilestedt bagging a brace and Rolfo finding the back of the net for the second successive game.
Across their opening two matches, Sweden have score seven goals while conceding just once, underlining their strength at both ends of the pitch.
Having lost only two of their past 10 games in all competitions, the Swedes will back themselves to reach the knockout phase on Wednesday.
Head-to-head: The only previous meeting between Argentina and Sweden came during the 2008 Summer Olympic Games in Beijing, China.
The Swedes claimed a 1-0 victory over the Argentines on that occasion, although neither side made it past the quarter-finals in China.
Team news: Argentina are expected to stick with their favoured 4-2-3-1 formation, meaning Paulina Gramaglia will continue to lead the line for the South Americans.
As for Sweden, Amanda Ilestedt is one of four players to have scored three goals in Australia and New Zealand, putting her among the Golden Boot contenders.
Given Sweden’s goalscoring exploits in the tournament so far, the European side are expected to make light work of the struggling South Americans.
With that in mind, Forebet predicts that Sweden will score over 2.5 goals and keep a clean sheet on their way to dispatching Argentina.