Kosovare Asllani’s stunning second-half strike sealed victory for Sweden as they beat Australia to finish third at the Women’s World Cup.
She rifled in a shot from the edge of the area to add to Fridolina Rolfo’s first-half penalty as Sweden won the bronze medal match for the second World Cup in succession.
Despite the defeat, this represents co-hosts Australia’s best-ever World Cup finish but the Matildas were unable to end on a high.
Rolfo’s penalty gave Peter Gerhardsson’s side the lead after a video assistant referee (VAR) check confirmed that Claire Hunt had clipped Stina Blackstenius in the box after 26 minutes.
And on the hour mark, Blackstenius played a superb square ball to Asllani, who stroked in a first-time shot to double their lead.
“It was an incredibly important match and the final 10 minutes were really tough,” said Sweden coach Peter Gerhardsson.
“So when that final whistle went and we had won, there was a great sense of relief and it was a wonderful feeling.
“It’s great to win a match of this magnitude – there’s been a lot of attention paid to this tournament back in Sweden.”
