Sweden scored a come-from-behind 4-1 victory over New Zealand's All Whites in front of 20,528 fans at Stockholm's Friends Arena on 16 June, as the visitors took on European opposition for the first time in 45 months. Truth be told, Darren Bazeley's men were far from disgraced against opponents they were taking on for the first time, to the extent that they were the more dominant side during the opening half-hour, for which they were rewarded by taking an early lead. But only after surviving an early scare - Jesper Karlsson and Viktor Claesson worked a slick one-two just outside the penalty area in the third minute which resulted in the former powering into the eighteen yard box, only to shank his volley well wide of the near post. The black-clad All Whites responded with patient approach work, a seventh minute move begun by Michael Boxall's winning of an aerial duel in the centre circle, and which culminated in Matthew Garbett spotting the angled run of Callum McCowatt, from right to left across the top of the penalty area. The striker's well-timed run was rewarded with a delightfully weighted inch-perfect pass, onto which McCowatt duly latched before tucking the ball beyond Swedish goalkeeper Kristoffer Nordfeldt and in by the far post, to the delight of the few exiled Kiwis in the crowd, while the rest of the stadium looked on in stunned silence - New Zealand 1, Sweden 0. The volume levels were soon cranked up again as they urged their local heroes on, but how they would have loved this fixture to have acknowledged the retirement of Zlatan Ibrahimovic. Given its friendly nature, it would have been an appropriate game for this unique talent to bow out in for his country, and allow the fans to sing his praises one last time. Alas, 'twas not to be. Another thing that wasn't to be was a second All Whites' goal, but it wasn't for the want of trying. McCowatt caught Gabriel Gudmundsson in possession on the left flank and raced forward into the space left vacant by the fullback, before scything inside and unleashing a twenty-five yard curling effort which Nordfeldt, plunging to his right, turned round the far post. Sweden's 'keeper was given further work seconds later, Liberato Cacace's inswinging corner being pawed out from beneath his crossbar by Nordfeldt, a threat which roused the team from the homeland of Abba and Volvo into life. Marcus Rohden combined with Claesson and Kristoffer Olsson in the eighteenth minute, carving out an opening for Robin Quaison, who sliced his shot badly wide from eight yards. The Swedes continued to gain traction in the contest, however, earning corners and free-kicks aplenty, all of which were confidently dealt with by the All Whites, who endured a spell of play prior to the half-hour mark in which crucial passes in promising moves lacked accuracy. That, too, played into Sweden's hands, and after Karlsson sent a thirty-yarder sailing over Oli Sail's goal, an angled 38th minute cross from Olsson picked out the head of Quaison, who saw his effort blocked by Cacace, with the rebound being gratefully grabbed by Sail. Within sixty seconds, Sweden were on level terms. Elijah Just drilled a pass at Joe Bell outside the All Whites' penalty area, one which New Zealand's captain was unable to control. Jens Cajuste pounced on the loose ball and instantly brought Claesson into play, the striker slipping the ball across to Karlsson, who swept the ball home beyond Sail, albeit with the aid of a deflection. The All Whites sought a swift response, the otherwise anonymous Ben Waine linking with Garbett after Just had won possession in the 41st minute. The flying figure of Cacace was rewarded for his attacking initiative by Garbett's pass, but his thunderous volley flashed over the bar. Two goals in as many minutes in the shadows of the half-time whistle turned the contest firmly in Sweden's favour. The first saw Olsson pounce on a Tim Payne error, then pick out Quaison, who sent a twenty-five yarder flying past Sail - 2-1.

Which swiftly became 3-1, the result of a stray pass out of defence being pounced on by Cajuste. Olsson was promptly fed possession, and he surged forward before inviting Karlsson to pick his spot beyond Sail. A first-time effort duly found the target via the far post. That seven-minute salvo, allied to their passing inaccuracy at crucial times, was the undoing of the All Whites in this match, although Sweden's ability to switch from second to fifth gear in a matter of seconds also aided the home team's cause - the speed of their attacks both excited and bewildered simultaneously. Sail smothered Karlsson's bid to complete his hat-trick in the 49th minute, but seven minutes later the All Whites came desperately close to reducing the deficit. Boxall played the ball wide to Cacace, who strode forward before whipping in a near post cross which McCowatt, anticipating brilliantly, ghosted in behind the covering defence to meet and steer first time on the volley inches over the bar - it would have been a brilliant finish had it hit the target! Three minutes later, English referee Craig Pawson - he rarely gives Liverpool any favours, so there was no way he was going to aid the All Whites' cause - ignored repeated fouls on Boxall, who was being held back rugby-style on a rare charge deep into Swedish territory. Bell remonstrated with the official in vain, while as he did so, Sweden played to the whistle, their cavalry charge downfield culminating in the combined efforts of Sail and Bill Tuiloma foiling the progress of Claesson. A flurry of substitutions followed, severely impacting the flow of what had been a captivating fixture for an hour or so. But the All Whites never stopped trying, and in the 72nd minute, went close again. Marko Stamenic caught substitute Hugo Larsson in possession halfway inside Sweden's half and stormed into the space in behind, before slipping a pass to Max Mata. The covering figure of Hjalmar Ekdal blocked his shot, but the Swedes failed to clear their lines. Cacace appeared on the scene, and slammed a twenty-yarder towards the target, an effort which Nordfeldt smothered well to his left. Sweden looked to finish with a flourish in the final five minutes, Callan Elliot clearing off the line to prevent Bell from putting through his own net as he snuffed out an attack by the home team, while Sail was right behind a twenty-five yard drive from substitute Anthony Elanga after another Karlsson-inspired attack. With the final kick of the game, Sweden made it 4-1 in stoppage time. Elanga worked a one-two on halfway with Quaison which sent the former storming through the inside right channel, Nando Pijnaker in his wake. The striker got to the edge of the penalty area and drilled an angled drive across Sail and into the far corner of the net to the delight of the local faithful on a day from which the All Whites will learn much. The reality is, they're at the stage where the gap between themselves and the top tier which the likes of Sweden occupy is determined by a combination of small details, decisions in split seconds and pinpoint accuracy in passing. While Covid has been a factor in restricting New Zealand to taking on European opposition so infrequently in recent years, more frequent matches against nations from the game's ultimate footballing hotbed are vital if we are to close that gap and advance further than just the first round of future FIFA World Cups, in which Oceania has a guaranteed spot going forward, a position this country must seek to occupy on virtually a permanent basis in the years to come. Sweden:     Nordfeldt; Sundgren, Starfelt, Ekdal (Kurtulus, 76), Gudmundsson (Sema, 76); Rohden, Cajuste (Larsson, 61), Olsson (Karlstrom, 46), Karlsson; Quaison, Claesson (Elanga, 61) All Whites:     Sail; Payne (Elliot, 74), Tuiloma, Boxall (Pijnaker, 79), Cacace; Garbett (Lewis, 75), Bell, Stamenic; McCowatt (Rojas, 79), Waine (Mata, 67), Just (Greive, 79) Referee:     Craig Pawson (England)