A wish list or an article about the Swedish National Team

There has been a slight hint of spring in the air the last couple of days. It could be the lack of snow (though its still freezing outside) or it could be that the first real Internationals are being played next week. I think its a combination of the two. As a follower of team Sweden (BlåGult) I have been reading as many articles as possible about the selected squad and what can be expected from them. I tend to drift from euphoric phases of optimism to the deepest depths of pessimism. I want to see Sweden at Euro 2012. To get there, its going to take a lot of heart and hard work. Its also going to take a bit of luck.

Sweden isn´t bad really, but they aren´t world beaters at the moment. The 4-1 loss in Amsterdam at the hands of the Netherlands was a good reminder or wake up call about the quality we have at the moment. Sure there are stars in the team, players even who have the potential to be something great. The problem I see is that many of them aren´t taking that final step up. I will grant that its easy to sit here and couch-coach. I don´t see the practices and I don´t get to watch all the games. I wish I did though. I wish I were a players scout.

For Sweden to reach Euro 2012 I think a few things have to happen. First we need to find a solution to the right back. Right now we are playing a young guy from Rosenborg BK named Mikael Lustig. He is still young enough where he can be developed, but I think that Adam Johansson from IFK Göteborg is a better option. I think he is more mature and a better defender than what Lustig is at the moment. A strong and solid defensive back four is the kind of base that Sweden needs to have if they are going to have a chance to hang with the bigger teams. You have to be able to rely on the back four to hold down the ship when the storms are raging. If you can´t rely on them, then there will be no solid effort on scoring once you get one or two of those rare chances against a top ten side. Sweden´s other problem is the midfield. Anders Svensson needs to stay because without him at the moment there isn´t much holding the whole thing together. I also have to admit I like Kim Källström, though he has a nasty habit of disappearing or being over-eager at times. If he can get his game together when it matters he is one hell of an asset. One player who needs to take a solid step forward in his personal development and really grab the bull by the horns is Rasmus Elm. He has had a lot of injury problmes and fitness issues the last season and a half, but it seems he is finally starting to move forward again.

The question is can he be what the national team needs: a playmaker? The same question mark hangs over his Alkmaar teammates head Pontus Wernbloom. Sure he has been good against average sides such as Hungary, but can he really put his play into a higher gear when the shit storm is raging? These are the kinds of questions that Sweden needs to answer in these two games next week. What about Bajrami and Sebastian Larsson? I am still not sure they are really the answer. I am hoping though, hoping really hard. The next challenge coming our way to Euro 2012 is Moldova. Sounds easy on paper, but its three points that we can´t be without. Its three points we have to have.

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