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Most would not expect Sweden to top Group E and yet here we are. To confirm their first-place finish they will have to win their match against Robert Lewandowski’s Poland or hope for a draw between Slovakia and Spain since in the tiebreaker they have the edge over the former thanks to a 1-0 win in the previous round.
But while Slovakia would be quite happy with a draw versus Spain and a second-place finish in Group E, La Furia Roja likely believes otherwise since they should leave no chance to luck by advancing as one of the best third-placed teams at the Euros. Better yet, a win over Slovakia could put them in first-place depending on an upset Sweden loss or a large enough advantage in the scoresheet to the Spaniards.
Group F is also still wide open in terms of where each team will finish, mostly thanks to Hungary’s heroics that had them draw 1-1 against title favourites France. Les Bleus remain atop, and they will need to put up a good fight against a Portuguese team wanting not just to repeat their Euro 2016 final result, but also show the rest of the continent their 4-2 loss to Germany last round was merely a fluke.
Therefore we still need to pay close attention to the developments in Germany versus Hungary. New heroics from the Hungarians could even take them from last to second place in Group F, if France manages to beat Portugal, while sending the Germans to hoping their group stage campaign was good enough for a knockout phase spot via best third-place slot.
SWEDEN vs. POLAND
Date / Time: Wednesday, June 23, 2021, 17.00 BST; 12pm EDT
Venue: Gazprom Arena, St. Petersburg, Russia
Referee: Michael Oliver (ENG)
On TV: ITV 4 (UK); ESPN2 (USA); elsewhere
Streaming online: The ITV Hub (UK); PrendeTV (USA)
SLOVAKIA vs. SPAIN
Date / Time: Wednesday, June 23, 2021, 17.00 BST; 12pm EDT
Venue: Estadio de la Cartuja, Seville, Spain
Referee: Björn Kuipers (NED)
On TV: ITV 1 (UK); ESPN (USA); elsewhere
Streaming online: The ITV Hub (UK); PrendeTV (USA)
PORTUGAL vs. FRANCE
Date / Time: Wednesday, June 23, 2021, 20.00 BST; 3pm EDT
Venue: Puskás Aréna, Budapest, Hungary
Referee: Antonio Mateu Lahoz (ESP)
On TV: BBC One (UK); ESPN, Univision, TUDN (USA); elsewhere
Streaming online: BBC iPlayer (UK); Univision NOW (USA)
GERMANY vs. HUNGARY
Date / Time: Wednesday, June 23, 2021, 20.00 BST; 3pm EDT
Venue: Allianz Arena, Munich, Germany
Referee: Sergei Karasev (RUS)
On TV: BBC Two (UK); ESPN2 (USA); elsewhere
Streaming online: BBC iPlayer (UK); PrendeTV (USA)