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Sweden
After missing out on the finals in 1998, Sweden is back on the world stage with a young and dynamic team. Unfortunately for them, it is not as talented as the one that finished third in 1994, and it faces the tournament's toughest draw with Argentina, England and Nigeria in Group F.
Henrik Larsson, who scored in the third-place game in the United States, is still around. Back then he was just a promising youngster; this time he will be the man to take charge.
The Celtic striker can do nothing wrong in Scotland, but he needs to prove that he can do it at the top level as well. The coaching duo of Tommy Soderberg and Lars Lagerback hopes so... the two managers worked well together in the qualifiers, but can they do it in Asia with the pressure on?
As the countdown to the 2002 World Cup in South Korea and Japan continues, CNNSI.com's Pedro Pinto will take a close look at all of the nations that will contend for football's greatest prize.
Pinto is an anchor on World Sport, the international sports show that airs live on CNN/Sports Illustrated and CNN International.
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The Swedish team is an organized and hard-working unit that is extremely hard to break down. Just ask their qualifying opponents in Group 4. Sweden went unbeaten in 10 matches, winning eight and drawing two. Relying on a traditional 4-4-2 system, Sweden depends on a solid back line that conceded only three goals in the whole qualifying campaign. Patric Andersson is as solid as a rock in the middle, and Olof Mellberg complements him well. In midfield, they have a dependable duo in Daniel Andersson and Fredrik Ljungberg; and in attack, Larsson will probably play alongside either Zlatan Ibrahimovic or Marcus Allback.
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Freddie Ljungberg. The Arsenal midfielder holds the key to unlock the opponents' defenses. In a side short on creativity, Ljungberg must find a way to supply Larsson with the ammunition he needs to fire in the goals. Ljungberg's Champions League experience will be very valuable to Sweden, and he will see a lot of the ball in the middle of the park. Freddie needs Daniel Andersson to cover him well so he can dart forward and cause havoc up front.
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Creativity. Twenty goals in 10 qualifiers isn't bad, but considering they were playing sides like Slovakia, Macedonia and Moldova, the team could have scored more goals. The reason they didn't was that they lacked invention in midfield. Ljungberg did his share, but he seems the only one capable on going on a mazy solo run. Daniel and Anders Andersson concentrate more on defending, as does Tobias Linderoth. Niclas Alexandersson also needs to step up his game a notch.
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Larsson.
Will he be able to score against the world's best defenders? No one can argue that he is a top striker, but in qualifying he scored many of his six goals from the penalty spot. Larsson's performance will also depend on how his attacking partner will do. If Allback, Ibrahimovic or even Anders Svensson do their share of work, Henrik will have more space to do his: scoring.
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Sweden finished first in UEFA's Group 4, ahead of Turkey, Slovakia, Macedonia and Moldova. It won eight and drew two of its 10 matches, scoring 20 goals and conceding only three.
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Sweden is making a 10th finals appearance. It finished third in 1950, second in 1958 and third again in 1994. It has played a total of 38 World Cup matches, winning 14, drawing nine and losing 15.
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This Swedish team faces an uphill battle to qualify for the second round. Yes, they are hardworking. Yes, they are organized. But in the World Cup finals, you need more than that to succeed, especially against the globe's best teams. I would not be shocked if they make the last 16, because they do have a balanced side, but their lack of creativity will hurt them in tight games.
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