Belgium coach Ives Serneels has suggested Sweden counterpart Peter Gerhardsson could be nervous ahead of their sides’ Euro 2022 quarter-final on Friday.
Gerhardsson has reportedly been reluctant to speak too much about his side ahead of the clash at Leigh Sports Village to prevent Belgium gaining an advantage.
Serneels claims this would not matter as he has already carried out his own research into his team’s last-eight opponents.
“For me not the point,” Serneels told reporters at a press conference. “It is his idea to say what he wants, but I know what we are going to do tomorrow and that is the most important.
“I don’t know the information, I’m not afraid of information going to the other side.
“It is football. It is a quarter-final of the European Championship. Maybe it shows a bit of nervousness of the other side. For me, I don’t see any problem.”
The winners will face tournament hosts England in the semi-finals next Tuesday.
Belgium’s Tine De Caigny celebrates scoring in the victory over Italy
Serneels admits his side will have their work cut out against the team ranked second in the world.
He said: “We are going to try to be ready from the first minute. Sweden have very good physical aspects in their game, so we will try to have a good plan.
“They played a good first round and every girl in that team has strong individual qualities.”
Sweden topped Group C after following up a draw against the Netherlands and tight win over Switzerland with a 5-0 thrashing of Portugal.
England’s players will no doubt be watching – they’ll play the winners on Tuesday
Belgium finished runners-up to France in Group D with four points.
Gerhardsson insists he is taking nothing for granted against a Belgium team who have impressed him.
He said: “You can talk about a national team, you can talk about a league (club) team. The more days you have together the more you get like a league team.
“Belgium, of the four teams we have met so far, I think are the most like a league team. They are the best organised both in defence and offence. They look like a league team with quality players.”
Follow Euro 2022 across Sky Sports
Sky Sports News and Sky Sports’ digital platforms will be following every step of England’s Euro 2022 journey ahead of Tuesday’s semi-final.
On the road, the Sky Sports News Mobile Presentation bus will continue to bring you all the best guests and analysis from the likes of Karen Carney, Sue Smith, Courtney Sweetman-Kirk and Laura Bassett offering their expert insight. The bus will be based in the heart of Sheffield ahead of England’s last-four fixture, before heading to Wembley for the final.
Across SkySports.com, the Sky Sports App and on social media, we’ll have all the big moments covered with our previews, features, reports, analysis, plus the Sky Sports Women’s Euros podcast with Sky Sports’ senior football journalist Charlotte Marsh and Sky Sports News reporter Anton Toloui.
And if you’re new to the England squad, don’t worry – here’s our guide to meeting the Lionesses.
As well as England, Sky Sports News and Sky Sports digital will also be covering all the knockout games as we head towards the showpiece final on July 31.
The knock-out phase…
Quarter-finals
Wednesday July 20
Quarter-final 1: England 2-1 Spain (AET)
Thursday July 21
Quarter-final 2: Germany vs Austria – kick-off 8pm, London Community Stadium
Friday July 22
Quarter-final 3: Sweden vs Belgium – kick-off 8pm, Leigh Sports Village
Saturday July 23
Quarter-final 4: France vs Netherlands – kick-off 8pm, New York Stadium
Semi-finals
Tuesday July 26
Semi-final 1: England vs Sweden or Belgium – kick-off 8pm, Bramall Lane
Wednesday July 27
Semi-final 2: Germany or Austria vs France or the Netherlands – kick-off 8pm, Stadium MK
Final
Sunday July 31
Winners semi-final 1 vs Winners semi-final 2 – kick-off 5pm, Wembley