Sweden v N Ireland preview

Worthington's side must win to keep faint hopes alive

By James Dall   Last updated: 17th October 2007   Subscribe to RSS Feed

Sweden v N Ireland preview

David Healy: Attacking threat

skysports.com prediction: Sweden 2 Northern Ireland 2

Player to watch: David Healy

Sky Bet odds: Sweden 2/9 Draw 4/1 Northern Ireland 8/1

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A repeat of March's shock win at Windsor Park over Sweden would be just the tonic for Nigel Worthington's Northern Ireland as they travel to the Rasunda Stadium on Wednesday.

Northern Ireland were given little chance of qualifying from Group F after being drawn alongside heavyweights Sweden and Spain, but five wins in their opening seven games left them in a fantastic position.

However, unexpected back-to-back defeats against Latvia and Iceland have left the Northern Irish with a mountain to climb if they want to book their place at Austria & Switzerland.

Sweden, meanwhile, sit top of the table and victory over Worthington's men would seal their place at next summer's finals.

Team news

Lars Lagerback has midfielder Niclas Alexandersson unavailable, but Freddie Ljungberg, Anders Linderoth and Mikael Nilsson are expected to shake off minor injuries.

Worthington will have to make do without suspended duo Chris Baird and Warren Feeney, while Keith Gillespie (hamstring) and Jonny Evans (ankle) have been ruled out.

Victory for the Irish in Stockholm would be against the odds, but it would be foolish to write off Worthington's men.