High emotion as Sweden reach final

Sweden 2-1 Canada
Sweden set up a rematch of the 2001 UEFA Women's Championship final with a dramatic comeback victory against Canada in the last four of the FIFA Women's World Cup.

Late goals
The side beaten by Germany to the European crown two years ago trailed their North American opponents with eleven minutes left - but Malin Moström and substitute Josefine Öqvist then scored in Portland to sent Sweden into their first World Cup final.

Early chance
With Germany having already overcome the United States at the same stadium, Sweden started the game as favourites to join them, and Victoria Svensson only just failed to connect with Moström's second-minute cross. Sweden had the majority of the play, although Canada were strong on the counterattack, and each side hit the crossbar towards the end of the first half, Malin Andersson for the Europeans and Kara Lang for their opponents.

Quick equaliser
It was Lang who finally opened the scoring in the 65th minute with a strong free-kick from 20 metres out. Sweden continued to create chances, though, and 14 minutes later were level when Moström ran on to Svensson's quickly taken free-kick and finished confidently.

Emotional winner
Sweden pushed hard to win the game in regulation time and four minutes from the final whistle, Svensson found Öqvist, a 70th-minute substitute for Anna Sjöstrom, and she drove the ball in off the post.

Comeback plan
Sweden coach Marika Domanksi-Lyfors said after the game: "We have been working hard for this for many years and now we are here finally. I think when we went 1-0 down we had a plan to score and to change the result."

German task
The Swedes lost to Germany in both the 1995 and 2001 UEFA Women's Championship finals. Of Sunday's World Cup decider in Carson, Domanksi-Lyfors said: "We know that they are physically strong so we will have to play at our very best to beat them."

'Sweden were very intense'
Canadian coach Even Pellerud, whose side now meet the US in the third-place match, said: "Sweden were very intense. They never stopped working and we were a step behind too many times."