Sweden came into the match without losing their last nine group matches at a World Cup and take away crucial three points with a 1-0 win over South Korea. Andreas Granqvist scored off a penalty, awarded by VAR, at a time when the Koreans looked in command. Though South Korea attacked all out after conceding the goal they failed to make most of the chances with poor finishing up-front. The Asians will have a mountain climb if they want to qualify for the knockout stages, as they take on defending champions Germany and the in-from Mexico.
Here are the updates from the match:
Sweden 1-0 South Korea
FULL TIME!!
90+3 minute: Corner for Korea, this could bring Korea back into the match. Poor delivery as the ball gets cleared. Koreans appeal for a handball, Referee shows no intrest. This might be the end for Korea in this match.
90+2 minute: Korea nearly had their equaliser. The goalkeeper was beaten but the header is wide from the post.
4 minutes of Stoppage time!
88 minute: Korea looking for more opportunities but cannot create space for a shot on goal.
85 minute: Plenty of passes up-front by the Koreans, they need something special here to equalise.
83 minute: The Korean forwards need to show interest here and trust a through ball. 6 minutes to go!!
82 minute: Corner for the Koreans. They are on the attack but need to work on their finishing up-front.
81 minute: Free-kick for South Korea. They fail to convert. Korea look determined but are running out of time.
79 minute: Sweden's Coach Janne Andersson makes a substitution for Sebastian Larsson, Svensson in.
78 minute: Korea make a breakthrough into the Swedish box but miss the target. Korea looking for inspiration at the Nizhny Novgorod Stadium.
77 minute: Substitution! Sweden's I. Thelin replaces O. Toivonen.
75 minute: Korea find space and try to create something up-front but give away the ball.
72 minute: Substitution for South Korea, Lee Seung-Woo in for Koo Ja-Cheol.
71 minute: Substitution for Sweden, Hiljemark replaces Albin Ekdal.
69 minute: Desperate defending by Koreans as the Swedish players try to find space. They are hunting in packs, the Swedish.
Sweden 1-0 South Korea!
65 minute: GOAL!!!! Andreas Granqvist scores a calm and composed penalty on the bottom right corner. This is Sweden's first goal in a World cup match since 2006.
64 minute: Substitution for Korea, Jung Woo-Young replaces Kim Shin-Wook.
62 minute: Referee checks for a potential penalty after having a look at it on the VAR. Penalty! for Sweden. Korean player fouls from behind, Sweden could have a breakthrough here.
60 minute: Sweden's Claesson gets a Yellow card for a bad sliding tackle on a Korean player.
57 minute: Hwang Hee-chan makes a brilliant run from the right flank. That looked threatening but Sweden defender clears it. Corner for South Korea.
56 minute: SAVED!!! Korean goalkeeper Cho Hyun-woo holds his ground to save a header. That looked like a certain goal but the Korean goalkeeper was on his toes.
55 minute: Yellow card! Hwang Heechan of Korea gets booked for a foolish challenge on Sweden player. Free-kick to Sweden on a dangerous position.
53 minute: Koreans are on the driver's seat, they are pushing hard to squeeze into the Swedish wall.
50 minute: Koo Jacheol goes down after a bad foul.
48 minute: Sweden give away another chance, after a great through ball from the midfield. Sweden need to make the most of their chances.
47 minute: Korea make the first charge of the second-half. But the Korean forward fails to find his teammates in the box.
Second-half is underway!
While Sweden have had two shots on target, Korea have had none.
POSSESSION (First-half):
Sweden- 65% South Korea- 35%
Both teams have had their chances. Sweden accelerated late but threatened to score on multiple occasions. Credit to Korea's Cho Hyun-woo for his brilliant saves, he certainly proved to be the difference. Sweden's Marcus Berg had a couple of chances but could not finish it off for Sweden. Both teams need to make the most of their chances to take away something from the game.
Half-time ! Korea 0-0 Sweden
2 minutes of stoppage time!
42 minute: Korea's Ki Sungyueng makes a timely tackle on the Sweden player in the box. A clean tackle as the Swedish player appeals for a penalty. Referee plays on.
41 minute: Korea are up and attacking as they look to take away a goal from the first-half.
34 minute: What an effort! Korean player makes a brilliant run from the right-flank but could not convert a cross into the box, Sweden defend well.
33 minute: Another foul, Swedish player goes down. Free-kick to Sweden.
31 minute: Son Heungmin of Korea goes down after a collision in the right-flank. This game has had 19 fouls so far, most at this World cup in the first-half.
29 minute: Korea survive again after Marcus Berg failed to capitalise off a corner kick. Koreans hold their nerve.
27 minute: Korea's Park Jooho goes down and he does not look comfortable. A substitution is on the cards. Kim Min-Woo replaces the injured Park Jooho.
Interestingly, the first shot on target came in the 20th minute, the second longest shot ever at a World cup.
24 minute: After enjoying possession early in the match, Koreans have been forced to defend deep in their half with Sweden on constant attack.
21 minute: Pontus Jansson fails to the hit the mark with his header. Sweden are on the front-foot.
20 minute: MISS!! Marcus Berg gives away a golden opportunity, Korean goalkeeper Cho Hyun-woo makes a magnificent save. Corner for Sweden.
19 minute: Sweden look in command as they operate the ball in the midfield but the need to find space up-front to create chances.
17 minute: That was close! The Korean goalkeeper holds his nerve in a clearance. South Korea 0-0 Sweden.
16 minute: The possession is now balanced as Sweden are catching up.
15 minute: Both teams are settling in after a dull start and show no sense of urgency from the two sides, yet.
14 minute: Sweden finally show signs of an attack and looked threatening in the front but the Korean defence hold their line.
This is the first match of the tournament at the Nizhny Novgorod Stadium, and the cheers are not stopping.
9 minute: Free-kick to Korea, Sweden are pushing hard but are conceding a lot of fouls early on.
7 minute: The Koreans are on the front-foot and enjoy a healthy possession in the early minutes of the match.
5 minute: Koreans are on the attack. Could have taken the lead with that Free-kick, but the Korean heads it past the Sweden target after a Korean player fouled a Sweden defender.
3 minute: Corner for South Korea. Positive start by the Koreans but the corner was punched away by Sweden's goalkeeper.
Kick-off
The playing XI:
Sweden: Robin Olsen (1), Mikael Lustig (2), Andreas Granqvist (4), Ludwig Augustinsson (6), Sebastian Larsson (7), Albin Ekdal (8), Marcus Berg (9), Emil Forsberg (10), Viktor Claesson (17), Pontus Jansson (18), Ola Toivonen (20).
South Korea: Cho Hyun-woo, Lee Yong, Jang Hyun-soo, Kim Young-gwon, Park Joo-ho, Lee Jae-sung, Ki Sung-yueng, Koo Ja-cheol, Hwang Hee-chan, Kim Shin-wook, Son Heung-min.
Full squad:
Sweden: Goalkeepers - Robin Olsen, Karl-Johan Johnsson. Defenders - Mikael Lustig, Victor Lindelof, Andreas Granqvist, Martin Olsson, Ludwig Augustinsson, Filip Helander, Emil Krafth, Pontus Jansson. Midfielders - Sebastian Larsson, Albin Ekdal, Emil Forsberg, Gustav Svensson, Oscar Hiljemark, Viktor Claesson, Marcus Rohden, Jimmy Durmaz. Forwards - Marcus Berg, Ola Toivonen, John Guidetti, Isaac Kiese-Thelin
South Korea: Goalkeepers - Jo Hyeon-Woo, Kim Jin-Hyeon, Kim Seung-Gyu. Defenders - Oh Ban-Suk, Park Joo-Ho, Chul Hong, jang Hyun-Soo, Kim Min-Woo, Jung Seung-Hyun, Go Yo-Han, Lee Yong, Kim Young-Gwon, Yun Young-Sun. Midfielders - Koo Ja-Cheol, Lee Jae-Sung, Ju Se-Jong, Moon Seon-Min, Lee Seung-Woo, Ki Sung-Yueng, Jung Woo-Young. Forwards - Hwang Hee-Chan, Son Heung-Min, Kim Shin-Wook
