Sixth-ranked Switzerland take on high-flying Sweden in a Round of 16 match of Fifa World Cup 2018 at St. Petersburg on Tuesday, July 3.
When does the match start and how to watch it live
The Round of 16 tie will start at 5 pm local time, 7:30 pm IST and 3 pm BST.
Sony Ten 2, Sony Ten 3 and Sony ESPN will provide live television coverage of the match in India. The live stream will be available on Sony Liv.
Sweden vs Switzerland preview
Both teams are chasing history when they meet in the all-important pre-quarter-final today. While Switzerland will be hoping to reach the last-eight at the World Cup after 64 years, in-form Sweden are counting on their good form to end a 24-year-long wait for a quarter-final berth.
Sweden were drawn in a tough group that also had world champions Germany and South Korea and Mexico. Much to the surprise of quite a few, Janne Andersson's men finished above Mexico even as Joachim Low's side faced an embarrassing early exit.
Sweden did not manage to get the better of Germany but they convincing during their 3-0 win over Mexico in their final round-robin group stage.
Andersson will be hoping the likes of Toivonen and Forsberg carry out their duties in the Swiss half today. Defenders Augustinsson and Granqvist have proved their goal-scoring abilities in Russia and their contribution will be key if the match goes into extra-time.
On the other hand, Switzerland, despite their high Fifa ranking, scraped through to the knockout stages. After holding Brazil to a 1-1 draw in their tournament opener, they edged past Serbia in a politically-charged game with goals from their superstars Granit Xhaka and Xherdan Shaqiri.
Switzerland coach hopeful of an improved showing
Coach Vladimir Petkovic conceded that Switzerland have been fortunate enough to reach this stage of the tournament but insisted that they will hit peak form against Sweden in St. Petersburg.
"We've been very fortunate so far, that is true, but what we've seen throughout the tournament is that in spells we have been playing very well," Petkovic said on the eve of the match.
He added: "We've seen that we have been dangerous so far in the second half of the game. This time round we want to keep up that pressure from the start and I think that is going to happen."
Team news: Sweden vs Switzerland
Switzerland will be without captain Stephan Lichtsteiner and Fabian Schar as the defenders are suspended for crucial tie. Michael Lang and Nico Elvedi are expected to replace the duo in St. Petersburg.
Meanwhile, Sweden have Sebastian Larsson suspended as well. The midfielder will be replaced by Gustav Svensson.
Probable playing XIs
Switzerland: Yann Sommer; Michael Lang, Johan Djourou, Manuel Akanji, Ricardo Rodriguez; Valon Behrami, Granit Xhaka; Xherdan Shaqiri, Blerim Dzemaili, Steven Zuber; Josip Drmic.
Sweden: Robin Olsen; Mikael Lustig, Victor Lindelöf, Andreas Granqvist, Ludwig Augustinsson; Viktor Claesson, Gustav Svensson, Albin Ekdal, Emil Forsberg; Marcus Berg, Ola Toivonen.
Global live stream and TV listings
UK: ITV, Live stream: The ITV Hub
US: Fox Sports, fubo TV; Live stream: Fox Sports GO
Argentina: TyC Sports, DIRECTV Sports; Live stream: DIRECTV Play
Australia: Optus Sport, SBS
Bangladesh: PTV Sports, Sony ESPN
Brazil: SporTV, Globo, Fox Sports 1 Brasil
France: TF1, beIN Sports 1; Live stream: beIN Sports Connect
