History augurs well for Germany against Sweden

Germany continue their bid for a sixth straight UEFA Women's EURO title against Sweden in the Gothenburg semi-final having dominated recent meetings with the hosts.

Head-to-head record 
• These teams have met 17 times with Germany leading 11-6 in wins and 33-24 in goals. There have been no draws (other than before extra time).

• They first met in the 1991 FIFA Women's World Cup on 29 November in Guangzhou, China, with Sweden cantering to a 4-0 victory. Current coach Pia Sundhage was involved from the start and scored her team's second goal after 11 minutes.

• Sundhage tasted defeat four years later when a Germany side containing her opposite number on Wednesday, Silvia Neid, exacted their revenge by ousting Sweden 3-2 in the 1995 UEFA European Women's Championship final in Kaiserslautern on 26 March. Germany have remained champions s

• The UEFA Women's EURO 2013 hosts fought back from two goals down to beat Germany 3-2 in the group stage of the 1995 World Cup in Helsingborg on 7 June. Sundhage and Neid both started the game, with the former drawing Sweden level ten minutes from time, before Malin Andersson completed the turnaround.

• The two countries were paired in a UEFA Women's EURO semi-final on 9 July 1997, with Germany prevailing 1-0 in Karlstad. Germany goalkeeper Nadine Angerer and Sweden midfielder Therese Sjögran were among the substitutes, while Neid took to the dugout as Germany's assistant coach.

• Neid remained in the role as Germany triumphed 3-1 in Erfurt on 23 June 2001 after the teams were drawn together in UEFA Women's EURO Group A. Angerer was an unused substitute, while Sjögran emerged from the bench in the second half. They met again in the final, Claudia Müller's golden goal settling matters. Sjögran was named in the Sweden XI, while Angerer was among the Germany substitutes.

• Germany lifted the Women's World Cup for the first time in 2003, edging out Sweden 2-1 in the California showpiece on 12 October 2003. Angerer had to be content with a place on the bench, as did Sweden's Josefine Öqvist. Sjögran joined in proceedings on 53 minutes.

• Renate Lingor scored the only goal as Germany consigned Sweden to a 1-0 reverse at the 2004 Olympic Games in Piraeus, Greece for the bronze medal. Sjögran came on shortly before the break, Lotta Schelin played the final 14 minutes, while Öqvist and Angerer remained on the bench. Germany subsequently came out on top in three consecutive Algarve cup encounters, scoring seven and conceding just once.

• After seven years without a defeat in this fixture, German succumbed 3-2 at the Algarve Cup in Faro, Portugal on 9 March 2009. Nilla Fischer and Schelin (2) got the goals. Kosovare Asllani, Hedvig Lindahl, Carloline Seger, Sara Thunebro and Nilla Fischer all played a part.

• Germany have held the upper hand in recent years, however, posting 1-0 and 4-0 friendly successes on 26 October 2011 and 5 March 2012 respectively.

• At youth level, Neid's Germany beat Sweden 1-0 at the 2002 UEFA European Women's Under-19 Championship. Anja Mittag started and scored, while Lindahl, Öqvist, Fischer and Schelin featured for Sweden. Neid was also at the U19 helm when Germany lost 2-1 in the group stage 12 months later. Seger scored an added-time winner, wiping out Annike Krahn's leveller. Melanie Behringer, Mittag and Fischer also started the match, Simone Laudehr was a substitute.

• The pair drew 1-1 at the U19 finals in 2006, with Nadine Kessler coming up against Lina Nilsson. They recorded the same result two years later in France where Josephine Henning faced Sofia Jakobsson and Emilie Konradsson.

• Olivia Schough scored in a 4-1 defeat by Germany in the U17 second qualifying round in 2008. Almuth Schult, Svenja Huth and Dzenifer Marozsán all featured for the winning team.

Sweden
• Schelin struck two more goals as the hosts stormed into the UEFA Women's EURO 2013 semi-finals with a 4-0 defeat of Iceland in Halmstad.

• The hosts defeated Italy 3-1 in their final Group A encounter to seal top spot. Raffaella Manieri's own goal (47) and a Schelin (49) strike had given Sweden the initiative, with Öqvist (57) adding the third in Halmstad.

• Sweden opened with a 1-1 draw against Denmark in Gothenburg, where they stayed to secure a 5-0 defeat of Finland that equalled the record margin of victory in a finals game.

• Sweden qualified automatically as hosts and played at both major final tournaments after UEFA Women's EURO 2009. They finished third at the 2011 Women's World Cup, earning a place at the 2012 Olympics.

• That proved less of a success as Sweden lost 2-1 in the quarter-finals to France, whom they had beaten to World Cup bronze.

• Sundhage led the United States to gold in London before leaving in September 2012 to replace Thomas Dennerby as coach of Sweden.

• In a 21-year international playing career, Sundhage was part of the Sweden team that won the inaugural 1984 European competition, still their only major honour. In the final against England, she scored the only goal of the home leg in Gothenburg and although England won the return 1-0 six days later, Sundhage converted the winning penalty in the shoot-out.

• Sweden have lost in three other Women's EURO finals, each time to the hosts: Norway in 1987 and Germany in 1995 and 2001. Norway beat them in the 2005 semi-finals and 2009 quarter-finals.

• Sweden's UEFA Women's EURO record reads: Played 98 Won 67 Drawn 15 Lost 16.

Germany 
• Simone Laudehr's goal ensured Germany repeated their 2009 quarter-final triumph over Italy and set up a last-four showdown with Sweden.

• Beaten 1-0 by Norway in Kalmar, Germany suffered their first defeat in a UEFA European Women's Championship fixture since a 3-1 home qualifying defeat to the same opponents on 2 May 1996. The intervening 59-game unbeaten run included 53 wins and six draws.

• Germany registered their first victory of UEFA Women's EURO 2013 with a 3-0 defeat of Iceland on Sunday. Lena Lotzen, with her first senior international goal, opened the scoring (24) with Okoyino da Mbabi (55, 84) securing a deserved win for the champions in Vaxjo.

• Okoyino da Mbabi's two goals took her to 19 for the competition (including qualifying), eclipsing the 18-year-old record of her compatriot, Patricia Brocker (18), for a single UEFA European Women's Championship.

• Germany's run of 19 successive victories at UEFA Women's EURO finals since a group stage was introduced in 1991 came to an end as they were held to a goalless draw by the Netherlands in their opening Group B game.

• Although Germany's run of 39 straight UEFA Women's EURO victories and 36 consecutive major qualifying victories, going back to November 1999, was ended in November 2011 by a 2-2 draw in Spain, they dropped no other points and ended eight clear in Group 2.

• Their goal tally from ten games was a typically impressive 64-3 (the next highest was Spain's 43) and included a joint tournament record 17-0 defeat of Kazakhstan a week before the Spain trip.

• They exited the 2011 World Cup on home soil with an extra-time loss to Japan in the quarter-finals, costing them the trophy they had held since 2003 and, for the first time, an Olympic slot.

• Germany's UEFA Women's EURO record reads: Played 113 Won 87 Drawn 19 Lost 7

Team ties 
• Germany coach Neid had five meetings with counterpart Sundhage in her previous role with the United States. In 2009, the US beat Germany 1-0 and 3-2 in the Algarve Cup final 12 months later. The US then sauntered to a 4-0 victory in Cleveland and recorded consecutive draws (1-1 and 2-2) with Germany as part of a two-game friendly series in 2012.

• German sides have won 8 times in 17 meetings with Swedish clubs (including four finals) in the UEFA Women's Champions League/UEFA Women's Cup, with five draws.

• In the 2005 final, Mittag was on target as 1. FFC Potsdam beat a Djurgården IF DFF team containing Thunebro 2-0 on their way to a 5-1 aggregate win. Three years later, 1. FFC Frankfurt prevailed 4-3 on aggregate against Umeå (1-1 away and 3-2 at home) in a tie that pitted Saskia Bartusiak against Lisa Dahlkvist, Sofia Jakobsson and Emilie Konradsson.

• Sweden striker Schelin was in the Olympiqe Lyonnais team that beat Potsdam 2-0 in the UEFA Women's Champions League final in London on 26 May 2011. Bianca Schmidt, Josephine Henning, Mittag and Fatmire Bajramaj were all on the losing side. Jennifer Cramer started on the bench. Schelin's club retained the trophy the following season at the expense of Frankfurt, who had Melanie Behringer, Dzsenifer Marozsán, Svenja Huth in their ranks.

• Schelin's Lyon failed to make three in a row, though, succumbing 1-0 to a VfL Wolfsburg team captained by Nadine Kessler and containing Luisa Wensing and Alexandra Popp – ruled out of UEFA Women’s EURO 2013 through injury.

• Mittag plays with Therese Sjögran and Lina Nilsson at FC Malmö.

• Antonia Göransson is at Potsdam with Jennifer Cramer and former club-mates include Mittag and Bianca Schmidt.

•  Angerer played for Djurgården in 2008 alongside Sara Thunebro.