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UEFA TO INVESTIGATE ALLEGED RACIST ABUSE OF ANTHONY ELANGA DURING U21 MATCH

Dublin , Ireland - 9 May 2019; Anthony Elanga of Sweden during the 2019 UEFA European Under-17 Championships Group B match between Sweden and England at Home Farm FC in Whitehall, Dublin. (Photo By Harry Murphy/Sportsfile via Getty Images)

UEFA has opened a disciplinary investigation into the alleged racial abuse directed at Manchester United forward Anthony Elanga while playing for Sweden Under-21s.

The alleged incident took place during Sweden’s 1-1 draw with Italy in a European U21 Championship qualifier in Monza on Tuesday. Elanga, 19, played the full 90 minutes and made the complaint after the game.

The Italian Football Federation subsequently dismissed the claim and called for clarification from the European governing body.

On Thursday evening, UEFA confirmed a formal investigation would take place.

“In accordance with Article 31(4) of the UEFA Disciplinary Regulations, a UEFA Ethics and Disciplinary Inspector has been appointed to conduct a disciplinary investigation regarding the incidents which allegedly occurred during the 2023 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualifying match between Italy and Sweden played on 12 October 2021,” a statement read.

“Information on this matter will be made available in due course.”

The game finished in dramatic fashion as Sweden snatched a stoppage-time equaliser through Tim Prica.

Sweden submitted reports to both the referees and the match delegates.

“I do not want to go further into what was said and by whom, but when I heard from Anthony what was said, it became clear to me that this is something that needs to be reported,” Martin Fredman, head of security at the Swedish Football Association said in a statement on www.svenskfotboll.se.

“Neither Anthony nor anyone else for that matter should have to be exposed to that type of attack.

“Anthony is back in Manchester and is feeling well under the circumstances. We will of course have continued close contact with him and have a dialogue about how we handle this in the future.”

The Italian federation (FIGC) insisted nothing of a racist nature occurred at any point, denying “in the most absolute way” that one of their under-21 players “expressed racist slurs against an opponent”.

Elanga has made three senior appearances for United and scored in a 2-1 win against Wolves on the final day of last season.

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CANADA WIN WOMEN’S OLYMPIC FOOTBALL GOLD AFTER DRAMATIC PENALTY SHOOT OUT AGAINST SWEDEN

Canada have won gold in the women’s Olympic soccer tournament after a 3-2 sudden death penalty shootout win against Sweden, following a 1-1 draw at the end of extra-time.

Stina Blackstenius put Sweden ahead in the first half before Jessie Fleming equalized with her second penalty of the tournament.

Sweden started the stronger of the two sides, controlling the ball and peppering the Canadian goal with shots.

Some lovely link-up play between Kosovare Asllani and Blackstenius saw Peter Gerhardsson’s side break the deadlock on 34 minutes.

The European team went into the break looking confident but Canada came out in the second half with renewed energy.

Their tenacity was rewarded on 64 minutes when Amanda Ilestedt brought Christine Sinclair down in the penalty area.

Initially the referee waved away the challenge but after a lengthy VAR review she awarded the spot-kick.

Fleming, who had scored a penalty against the United States women’s national team in the semifinal, was handed the ball by Sinclair and sent Hedvig Lindahl in the wrong direction to bring the sides equal.

With the match ending 1-1 after 90 minutes, the game went to extra-time and then penalties.

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ARTEM DOVBYK LATE STRIKE HELPS UKRAINE EDGE SWEDEN TO BOOK LAST EIGHT SPOT WITH ENGLAND

TOPSHOT - Ukraine's forward Artem Dovbyk celebrates after scoring his team's second goal during the UEFA EURO 2020 round of 16 football match between Sweden and Ukraine at Hampden Park in Glasgow on June 29, 2021. (Photo by Robert Perry / POOL / AFP)

Substitute Artem Dovbyk scored a dramatic stoppage-time winner in extra-time as Ukraine booked their Euro 2020 quarter-final place against England with a 2-1 win over Sweden at Hampden Park.

Manchester City’s Oleksandr Zinchenko fired in an unstoppable shot in the 27th minute to give Ukraine the lead but two minutes from the interval, Emil Forsberg levelled with a deflected strike from 25 yards – his fourth goal of the competition.

A compelling contest continued after the break with Forsberg twice hitting woodwork but with no more goals, it went to 30 additional minutes where Italian referee Daniel Orsata, with the help of VAR, sent off Sweden’s Marcus Danielson in the 99th minute for a high tackle on Ukraine substitute Artem Besedin.

The 10-men Swedes looked as though they would hold out for penalties but as the match edged into three minutes of added time, Dovbyk headed in a cross from Zinchenko from close range.

Now, after a night of exertion and drama in Glasgow, Ukraine will take on Gareth Southgate’s side, who beat Germany 2-0 earlier in the day, in Rome on Saturday night.

Sweden made the early running but in the 10th minute their goalkeeper Robin Olsen had to produce a fine save from Roman Yaremchuk’s well-struck drive after captain Andriy Yarmolenko had set him up inside the box.

Back came the Swedes and Alexander Isak finished a fine move by curling a drive from inside the box just past the far post.

Ukraine, however, took advantage of the next opportunity they created.

Yarmolenko flicked a pass to Zinchenko from the other side of the box and a powerful left-footed strike from the talented 24-year-old went straight through Olsen.

The stunned Swedes almost responded immediately with captain Sebastian Larsson’s long-range free-kick almost wrong-footing Ukraine keeper Georgiy Bushchan, who parried for a corner which he collected with ease.

However, Bushchan had little chance when Forsberg took a pass from Isak and drove in from 25 yards, the ball taking a nick off Illya Zabarnyi before flashing past the keeper and settling in the net.

Both sides went for it again after the break and Larsson came close with a drive from distance before Ukraine’s Serhiy Sydorchuk and then Forsberg hit the outside of the post with efforts at either end.

Just on the hour mark, Isak failed to connect properly with a long ball over the top and missed the target with only the keeper to beat, albeit he may have been offside.

Bushchan saved from Dejan Kulusevski’s curling shot from 16 yards and at the other end Olsen gathered a shot from Yarmolenko, also from inside the penalty area, before the influential Forsberg crashed a drive from the edge of the box against the bar.

Kulusevski had a chance in the final minute when he raced clear of the Ukraine defence but his shot was brilliantly blocked by back-tracking defender Oleksandr Karavaev.

Then came extra-time and the dismissal of Danielson, after he was initially shown a yellow card, for his challenge on substitute Besedin which required him to be replaced by Viktor Tsygankov.

Dovbyk, on for Yarmolenko at half-time in extra-time, scooped a chance over the bar after 112 minutes – he could have been offside – but he made up for it and then some when he stooped to head in a dramatic winner.

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EURO 2020: SWEDEN TOP GROUP E WITH LAST-GASP WIN OVER POLAND

Soccer Football - Euro 2020 - Group E - Sweden v Slovakia - Saint Petersburg Stadium, Saint Petersburg, Russia - June 18, 2021 Sweden's Sebastian Larsson and Alexander Isak celebrate after the match Pool via REUTERS/Kirill Kudryavtsev

Viktor Claesson struck a stoppage-time winner as Sweden beat Poland 3-2 in St. Petersburg to finish top of Group E.

Sweden had led 2-0 through Emil Forsberg’s double before Robert Lewandowski’s second-half brace restored Poland’s hopes of progressing as one of the best third-placed teams.

But Krasnodar winger Claesson, a second-half substitute, held his nerve to slot home Sweden’s third in the fourth minute of added time.

Sweden will now play Ukraine, Czech Republic or Switzerland in Glasgow on Tuesday in the round of 16, while Group E rivals Spain face Croatia in Copenhagen on Monday following their 5-0 win against Slovakia.

Sweden, who have progressed from their group at a Euro finals for the first time since reaching the quarter-finals in 2004, extended their unbeaten run in 2021 to eight matches.

They made a flying start, scoring from their first attack. Forsberg burst onto the ball after team-mate Alexander Isak had been tackled on the edge of the area and drilled an emphatic finish into the bottom corner.

Poland should have equalised in the 18th minute when Lewandowski, who scored a Bundesliga record of 41 goals this season, somehow missed after having two bites of the cherry.

The Bayern Munich striker headed Piotr Zielinski’s corner against the underside of the crossbar and after the ball bounced back to him, his second header also struck the crossbar before Sweden hacked it clear.

Poland began to get a foothold in the game and breached the Swedes’ yellow defensive wall just before half-time.

Napoli midfielder Zielinski combined well with Lewandowski and arrowed a shot towards the top corner, which was brilliantly saved by Sweden goalkeeper Robin Olsen.

Both goalkeepers made telling saves at the start of the second half. Poland’s Wojciech Szczesny kept out Robin Quaison’s shot and Olsen was at full stretch to keep out Grzegorz Krychowiak’s effort.

Poland were left a mountain to climb in the 59th minute when Forsberg struck his second for Sweden, first time from just inside the area, following a swift counter-attack.

But Poland hit back within two minutes through Lewandowski, who cut inside and curled a superb right-footed finish beyond Olsen.

A lengthy VAR check then denied Poland an equaliser for offside after Jakub Swierczok had tapped home from close range.

With time running out for Poland, impressive substitute Przemyslaw Frankowski’s cross picked out Lewandowski, who controlled and calmly slotted home to set up a grandstand finale.

It was Lewandowski’s 69th international goal in 122 appearances, but Claesson ended Poland’s hopes in added time after being set up by Dejan Kulusevski.

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EURO 2020: SWEDEN EDGE SLOVAKIA TO GO TOP GROUP E

Sweden closed in on reaching the European Championship knockout stages for the first time since 2004 with a 1-0 victory over Slovakia.

Emil Forsberg’s 77th-minute penalty settled an encounter which was low on chances and entertainment but lifted Jan Andersson’s side on to four points, leaving Slovakia likely needing to get a result against Spain in their final Euro 2020 Group E fixture to progress.

After their draw in the opener against Spain, in which they had just 15 per cent possession, Sweden were again content to concede the majority of the ball to their unambitious opponents.

It led to a dour game which only briefly sprang to life around the hour mark with a flurry of chances which culminated in Newcastle goalkeeper Martin Dubravka bringing down substitute Robin Quaison to allow Forsberg to end the team’s run of 365 minutes without a goal at the European Championship.

Slovakia forced the first genuine save in the 58th minute when Robin Olsen, who spent last season on loan at Everton, tipped over a header from Juraj Kucka only for the offside flag to go up.

Dubravka produced a similarly impressive save from Ludwig Augustinsson, who rose highest to meet Sebastian Larsson’s cross, but this one would have counted. From the resulting corner Marcus Danielson’s twisting header from six yards flew over.

LaLiga’s young player of the year Alexander Isak then came to the fore with the Real Sociedad player, after having a shot from distance deflected wide, heading on to the roof of the net.

The 21-year-old’s weaving run from 40 yards out lit up the St Petersburg Stadium and ended with him forcing a near-post save out of Dubravka but the Slovakia goalkeeper was caught on his heels moments later.

Isak’s spinning through-ball on the turn fell to Quaison and although Dubravka pulled out of the challenge his momentum brought down the substitute. And Forsberg finally broke the deadlock to put his nation within touching distance of the last 16.

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SWEDEN STRIKER, ZLATAN IBRAHIMOVIC TO MISS EURO 2020 DUE TO KNEE INJURY

Zlatan Ibrahimovic has been ruled out of Euro 2020 due to a knee injury, the Swedish Football Association has announced.

The 39-year-old sustained the problem during AC Milan’s 3-0 win at Juventus last week and faced a race against time to recover his fitness.

The SFA wrote on Twitter: “Today, Zlatan has informed [coach] Janne Andersson that his injury will stop him from participating in the European Championship this summer.”

The striker retired from international duty in 2016 but made a surprise return in March in the 1-0 win over Georgia.

In doing so he became the oldest player to represent his country, eclipsing the previous record of 38 years and 59 days held by goalkeeper Thomas Ravelli.

Commenting on his decision to reverse his retirement decision at the time, Ibrahimovic told reporters: “I can still do those movements, that ninja stuff. I still have it in me, even if I’m 39.”

Ibrahimovic limped off in the 64th minute of his side’s victory last Sunday, but had raised hopes of being fit for the Euros after subsequent scans revealed only a strain.

Sweden play their first match of the tournament against Spain in Seville on June 14, before also facing Slovakia and Poland in Group E.

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IBRAHIMOVIC “THE GOD” RETURNS TO SWEDEN SQUAD

Zlatan Ibrahimovic has been named in a Sweden squad for the first time since 2016 after coming out of international retirement ahead of this month’s World Cup qualifiers.

Ibrahimovic, 39, will become the oldest player to appear for Sweden if he gets on the pitch to add to his 116 international appearances, in which he has scored 62 goals.

The AC Milan striker announced the news in typically understated fashion as he wrote on Twitter: “The return of the God @svenskfotboll”.

Sweden will play World Cup qualifiers against Georgia and Kosovo on March 25 and 28 respectively before a friendly at home to Estonia on March 31.

Ibrahimovic has been in outstanding form once again this season, scoring 16 goals in 21 appearances as Milan try to chase down rivals Inter in the Serie A title race.

Sweden coach Janne Andersson welcomed the news that Ibrahimovic had made himself available for the national team once again.

“First of all, he is a very good footballer, the best we have had in Sweden,” he said on the federation’s website.

“Of course it’s very nice that he wants to come back. In addition to what he can contribute on the pitch, he has incredible experience and can contribute that to the other players in the team.”

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NATIONS LEAGUE: DIOGO JOTA SCORES BRACE AS PORTUGAL EASES PAST SWEDEN DESPITE RONALDO’S ABSENCE.

Goals from Bernardo Silva and a brace from Diogo Jota gave Portugal a comfortable 3-0 win over Sweden in the Nations League on Wednesday as the hosts cracked on despite the absence of Cristiano Ronaldo due to a positive COVID-19 test.

Ronaldo’s only contribution to the game was a post on Instagram around kickoff time urging on his teammates as he remained in quarantine, and they proved more than equal to the task.

William Carvalho could have given the home side the lead in the opening minutes but his header came back of a post and bounced away to safety, and Sweden’s defence struggled to deal with Portugal’s pace and precision.

Silva opened the scoring in the 21st minute as Portugal won the ball back in the middle of the field and quickly countered, with Jota firing a precise pass to Silva in the penalty area for a perfect first-time finish.

Marcus Berg went close to equalising for Sweden with a powerful shot which hit the post, but the more the Swedes attacked the more vulnerable they were to Portugal’s lightning-quick counter-attacks.

Jota got on the scoresheet just before half-time, lashing home Joao Cancelo’s cross from deep on the right to make it 2-0, and he added a superb third with a solo run and thumping shot in the 71st minute.

Sweden coach Janne Andersson will miss his side’s next Nations League game against Croatia following his second yellow card of the tournament, the 57-year-old showing his frustration with refereeing decisions that went against his team.

With 10 points from four games, Portugal top Group 2 in League A on goal difference ahead of France, who beat Croatia 2-1 in Zagreb. The Swedes are bottom of the group after slumping to four straight defeats.