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FOOTBALL

Ukraine beat lacklustre Sweden

Ukraine beat Sweden 1-0 in a lacklustre warm-up match in Stockholm on Sunday that saw the Swedes booed by the home fans just days before the start of the European Championships.

Ukraine beat lacklustre Sweden

Sweden, plagued by injuries to key players, presented a strong line-up that included star striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic, whose lingering knee woes have raised concerns about his participation in the Euro, and veteran Henrik Larsson.

But the pair were unable to make things happen, and the Swedes had nothing to show for their efforts after dominating the first half.

The hosts – and in particular their shaky defence – faded in the second half and failed to deliver despite creating several chances.

A long-range shot by Sergei Nazarenko in the 82nd minute sealed victory for Ukraine when Sweden’s second-string goalie Rami Shaaban, who replaced Andreas Isaksson at half-time, was caught going the wrong way.

Ibrahimovic, who has not scored for Sweden since October 2005, delivered one bright note for coach Lars Lagerbaeck, enduring 55 minutes of play with no pain in his knee.

“I felt no pain, we’ll see how it feels tomorrow but I’m not worried,” he told Swedish TV3 after the match.

West Ham midfielder Fredrik Ljungberg, himself nursing a broken rib, said warm-up matches ahead of big championships “are always tough.”

“Ukraine is a good technical team. But if we had made good on our chances the game would have been ours,” he said.

“At times we showed that we really can play but we have to be at our best in 10 days,” he added.

One negative note was a foot injury suffered by striker Johan Elmander, who limped off the pitch after just 21 minutes.

RACISM

VIDEO: Spain’s La Liga reviews video of boy racially abusing Vinicius

Spain's La Liga on Monday said it was reviewing a video of a child making racist insults towards Real Madrid forward Vinicius Junior during the 2-2 draw with Valencia at the weekend.

VIDEO: Spain's La Liga reviews video of boy racially abusing Vinicius

“We’re in the process of studying and analysing the facts from a legal standpoint to see what we can and should do,” La Liga sources said.

In a video published by a journalist for ESPN Brasil, and picked up by Spanish media, a boy sitting in a woman’s lap can be heard calling Vinicius a “monkey”.

https://twitter.com/GravesenFumado/status/1764242481984491822

The Brazilian scored twice for Madrid as his team recovered from two goals down at Mestalla on Saturday.

Vinicius raised his fist in a “Black Power” salute after the first of his two goals at a ground where he was racially abused last season. Valencia subsequently banned three people from the stadium for life.

The 23-year-old has become a symbol of the fight against discrimination in Spanish football after suffering racist abuse on many occasions, and he was jeered repeatedly by home supporters on Saturday.

Jude Bellingham was sent off after the final whistle against Valencia for protesting after the referee blew the final whistle right before the England midfielder headed home what he thought was the winning goal.

READ ALSO: Football star Vinicius highlights racist behaviour from Spanish fans

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