Swedes Finally Get on Board

BERLIN, June 15 -- Another half of frustrating soccer just completed Thursday night, Swedish midfielder Freddie Ljungberg was about to leave the field at Olympic Stadium, when his protracted excursion brought him before a swarm of Swedish fans. They screamed for him and urged him on, and Ljungberg instantly lit up, flashing a smile and clapping his hands over his head in response. This had been a difficult World Cup, for sure, but all was not lost.

Nearly an hour later, with the Swedes minutes from settling for another scoreless tie after dominating a second successive opponent and their hopes of winning Group B two minutes from being expunged, Ljungberg gave his new friends in the stands a gift more divine than his halftime salute. He delivered the goal that ended 178 minutes of frustration and a 1-0 victory over Paraguay before 72,000 fans in Berlin. Striker Marcus Allback, an astute halftime substitute, headed a pass across a gaping goalmouth, and Ljungberg, arriving late, headed it to the far side uncontested.

Sweden has played, by far, the best soccer in its group, and will face England on Tuesday for the chance to prove it. The win gave the Swedes four points and put them in commanding position to at least advance to the second round. Beating England will assure first in the group, while Paraguay has been eliminated. Tiny Trinidad and Tobago retains a slight chance of advancing, needing a win over Paraguay and help from England on Tuesday.

For the throngs of Swedes packing this city, the release triggered by Ljungberg's goal erased the agony of so many wasted opportunities over two games.

On Saturday in Dortmund, Sweden took 18 shots (to six by Trinidad and Tobago), had an astonishing 60 percent of the possession and had a man advantage for a good portion of the game, yet found goalkeeper Shaka Hislop (Howard University) impenetrable. Thursday, Coach Lars Lagerback went for broke again, playing just three defenders, sending on attackers in the second half and watching his team take over the match from the third minute on, still unable to break through until the 89th minute.

"Unfortunately, it was the same problem -- we can't score," said Ljungberg, who plays for Arsenal in London. "We created a lot of chances and we were getting a little worried, but now hopefully more goals are coming."

England has yet to play inspired soccer in this tournament, but was mere minutes from winning the group anyway, which a tie in this game would have ensured. Now that will be settled Tuesday in Cologne. Given the massive contingents of fans from those countries here in Germany, the match figures to be electric. ("It's going to be a massive game," Ljungberg said, the hint of an English accent lacing his words from years spent in the country.)

Expectations are high in Sweden, with Lagerback's job security the central theme of the postgame news conference. England and Sweden tied, 1-1, in the last World Cup; England's coach, Sven-Goran Eriksson, is a Swede; and winning the group could mean avoiding host Germany in the knockout round. And Sweden has not lost to England in 38 years.

"We're looking forward to the match," Lagerback said. "It's always nice and interesting to play against England."

Lagerback said he brought on Allback at halftime only because starting striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic was suffering from a leg injury. But Ibrahimovic, a game-breaking, 6-foot-4 talent, had slumped with Juventus of Italy late in the past season, and appeared out of sorts Thursday as well. Repeatedly, he was gifted with tremendous service from the wingers, but he wasted their efforts with poor touches, indecision and errant shots on goal.

Ibrahimovic, 24, never connected with striker Henrik Larsson, 34, a legend of Swedish soccer. Allback, 32, and Larsson have much deeper roots, and as a tandem gave Paraguay more to consider.

"Sometimes you make a substitution, and you get lucky," Lagerback said, deflecting credit.

Allback should have ended the wait in the 59th minute, when he beat the offside trap, had six yards on the defense and chipped the ball over goalkeeper Aldo Bobadilla's head and toward the vacant goal. Just as Allback caught up to it again, about to give it the crucial nudge over the line, defender Denis Caniza intervened, coming from nowhere to clear the ball from a difficult angle before sliding hard into the back of the net. Other Swedes followed with punishing drives to the right, left and over the net, and in the end all the missed chances made Ljungberg's strike all the more glorious.