THE WAY I SEE IT

England did things hard way, but got the job done

- By Mike Pejic

Too many coaches fall into the trap of trying to emulate Manchester City or Spain and lose sight of why they are doing it.

They have superstar players who are good enough to manoeuvre the opposition around and then hit fast when there are gaps. Racking up passes in itself isn’t the end goal and for most teams and most players, the risk-reward balance is chaotic. We seem more willing to take a risk going backwards than forwards in some matches. It's bonkers.

Anyway, Sweden's link-in play was better in the first half and they were finding players with forward movement and momentum.