Sweden coach Thomas Dennerby on Tuesday defended his team amid gibes of bully-girl tactics in their 1-0 Group C opener against newcomers Colombia at the women’s World Cup.
The towering Sweden players used their physical power to get the upper hand on the younger Colombia team, who were frequently floored during their World Cup debut following clashes with the Scandinavians.
Colombia skipper Natalia Gaitan, who caused Sweden problems early in the game, was to find herself the brunt of one such tackle as the 20-year-old defender was floored by a barging Jessica Landstrom.
Defender Gaitan, at 1.64m one of the taller players in the -Colombia side, was stretchered off temporarily after colliding with the 1.8m Landstrom.
“I was too fast on the ball and it was unfortunate that she injured herself,” said 26-year-old Landstrom, who scored the only goal after 57 minutes following a string of missed chances.
Skipper Caroline Seger, 1.76m, was later booked for a foul on midfielder Daniela Montoya, with Dennerby finally deciding it was “wise” to substitute Seger after a near miss in the second half.
Dennerby said that expectations had been high for Sweden, who failed to get past the group stages for the first time in 2007.
He said that they would be using the same tactics against North Korea on Saturday.
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