Good evening and welcome to Sports Mole's live coverage of the Euro 2012 Group D match between Ukraine and Sweden.
Both sides enter the match knowing that a win would take them top of the group following England and France's 1-1 draw earlier this evening.
Ukraine qualified for the tournament as co-hosts and this will be their first ever appearance in the European Championship – making them the only debutant.
None of the last eight hosts have won their opening games at the Euros and therefore Oleg Blokhin's men will be looking to change that piece of history.
Meanwhile, Sweden enter the clash having won their last four friendlies. They also won eight of their 10 qualifiers and therefore enter full of confidence.
21.40So there we have it. Ukraine get off to the best possible start with a 2-1 win over Sweden. In truth, the host nation dominated the opening period and might have been ahead at the break. It was Ibrahimovic who sent Sweden into the lead, however, two goals from the veteran Shevchenko secured all three points. Our full report of the match can be found here. Thanks for joining Sports Mole for the coverage.
FULL-TIMEUkraine 2-1 Sweden
90+2 minChance! So nearly an equaliser for Mellberg as he drifts into the box. However, he just clips it high.
90+2 minChange for Ukraine as Marko Devic replaces Konoplyanka.
90 minWe will play three additional minutes.
90 minOh my word! What a chance for Elmander to level after Ibrahimovic had fed his strike partner. However, he fires horribly high.
89 minSuddenly there's urgency from Sweden as they pour forward. Ukraine are almost there.
87 minAgain it's another chance for Sweden as Wilhelmsson whips a dangerous cross into the box. Why on earth did he not start?
85 minChance for Sweden as Ibrahimovic finds the middle of the box with a header. However, again it's good defending from the host nation.
85 minAnother change for Ukraine as Voronin is replaced by Ruslan Rotan.
83 minBrilliant work from Voronin as he buys a free-kick in the Sweden half. How good has he been tonight?!
81 minMeanwhile, a massive roar erupts as two-goal Shevchenko is replaced by Artem Milevskiy.
79 minEnd-to-end stuff as Yarmolenko comes close for Ukraine before Wilhelmsson stings a shot straight at Pyatov. Better from Sweden.
78 minReally nice work from Wilhelmsson as he glides into the Ukraine box. However, he just takes one touch too many.
76 minThumping strike from Ibrahimovic so nearly draws Sweden level. However, Pyatov beats the ball to safety.
76 minAnother stat courtesy of Infostrada Sports: "Shevchenko is the 12th player to score at least twice in a European Championship match and a World Cup match. Among others are Zidane, Muller, Villa, Henry, Larsson."
74 minIt's ambitious from Konoplyanka as he strikes from distance. Still no great threat from Sweden.
73 minWhat a sensational beard Mellberg is sporting. I have a similiar one myself. Anyway, back to the football.
71 minFinal change for Sweden as Rosenberg is replaced by Johan Elmander.
70 minChance for Sweden, however, as Ibra finds Elm. However, Pyatov collects the danger.
70 minThe quality from Sweden just has not been there tonight. Aside from Ibrahimovic, it's a struggle.
68 minAnother change for Sweden as Larsson is replaced by Christian Wilhelmsson.
68 minWhere's the response from Sweden? Ukraine continue to dominate the ball.
66 minThe challenges are just starting to fly in with Sweden frustrated with events. I wouldn't be surprised to see a red in this one.
64 minChange for Sweden as Toivonen is replaced by Anders Svensson.
64 minYou just cannot write these sort of scripts. What a moment. And we still have 37 minutes to play!
62 minOh my word! Shevchenko sends Ukraine into a 2-1 lead with a thumping header from a corner.
61 minGOAL! Ukraine 2-1 Sweden (Shevchenko)
61 minA word from former England striker Gary Lineker: "Wonderful moment inside the Shevchenko Stadium in the City of Shevchenko," he told the BBC.
59 minThe corner from Ukraine is easily headed away by Toivonen before Selin strikes from distance. The chances are falling the home side's way.
59 minUkraine continue to pour forward. There are goals in this one. Believe me.
57 minOh my word. What a five minutes! AC Milan past and present score for either side.
55 minWow! The national hero levels this one up at 1-1. It's a wonderful cross from Yarmolenko and Shevchenko darts in at the near-post to power a header home. That's his 47th goal for his country.
55 minGOAL! Ukraine 1-1 Sweden (Shevchenko)
54 minSuddenly every Swedish player wants the ball. Can Ukraine respond?
54 minSay what you like about the man. But he has come to his country's rescue here. Now Ukraine have to chase it.
52 minIbrahimovic sends Sweden into the lead with a close-range finish after the striker had been found by Kallstrom in the box. Really smart finish from the skipper.
52 minGOAL! Ukraine 0-1 Sweden (Ibrahimovic)
52 minHowever, he is up on his feet and ready to continue. Well done that man!
50 minIt does not look great for Shevchenko. The striker is clearly struggling.
49 minGood defending from Selin as he pounces at the feet of Rosenberg to block a goal-bound strike.
48 minA word from former Arsenal defender Lee Dixon: "If England are watching this game they will be delighted, there's nothing to concern them from either Ukraine or Sweden," he told the BBC.
46 minUkraine start the second period on the front foot with Yarmolenko impressing once more. However, Sweden clear the danger.
46 minHere we go then. Ukraine get us underway. Will we have goals in the second period?
20.40More from Molby: "It was Ukraine's half. They will be delighted and slightly disappointed they are not ahead. But Sweden's team talk is easy - they have to be better and more aggressive. They cannot allow Voronin to have as much room centrally as they did in the first half."
20.33So there we have it. The Group D match between Ukraine and Sweden remains 0-0 after 45 minutes of football. Ukraine have arguably been the better side with their use of the ball. However, the best chance of the match came to Sweden after 40 minutes when Ibrahimovic headed against the post. Let's hope for goals in the second period!
HALF-TIMEUkraine 0-0 Sweden
45 minWe will play an additional one minute at the end of the half.
43 minChance! Big opportunity for Ukraine as Oleh Gusev finds Konoplyanka in the box. However, the midfielder fires horribly high. Should have done better.
42 minUkraine continue to dominate the ball as the half approaches its latter stages. There's been some really nice possession play in this match.
40 minIbrahimovic hits the post! There's the best chance of the match as Larsson finds his skipper. But the AC Milan striker can only clip the post with a header.
38 minYarmolenko continues to impress for Ukraine down the left and the 22-year-old so nearly slotted home at the far-post following good work from Shevchenko. However, the ball was cleared.
36 minHalf-chance for Ukraine as Voronin releases a strike from distance. However, it was palmed away by a nervy Isaksson.
36 minThe game is certainly more even in terms of possession. However, chances have been few and far between thus far.
34 minHere's a stat for you courtesy of Infostrada Sports: "Ukraine hope to become the first debutants to reach the knockout phase since Croatia reached the quarter-finals in 1996."
32 minShot on the half-turn from Rosenberg is collected by Pyatov, who made a bit of a meal of it. The Ukraine goalkeeper looks a bit suspect.
32 minBut there is the bad side of Ibrahimovic. The big man collects the ball outside the box, but his shot goes out for a throw-in.
30 minChance for Ukraine to whip a dangerous ball into the box. However, Nazarenko's ball is gathered by Isaksson.
28 minMy advice to Sweden? Feed Ibrahimovic. He is the best player on the pitch by a country mile.
28 minNice work from Martin Olsson as the Blackburn defender wins a corner for his team. However, the danger is cleared.
26 minBrilliant run from Voronin along the line of Sweden's defence. However, Yvhen Selin's ball is just overhit.
24 minOh no. Shevchenko grabs the back of his leg. However, he seems ok to continue.
24 minChance! So nearly for Shevchenko after the striker had been found by Nazarenko in the box. However, the skipper just fires wide.
22 minHere's an interesting question. What nation of players' names are harder to spell - Russia or Ukraine?
20 minAgain it's wonderful from Ibrahimovic as he finds Kallstrom with a delicate ball. The Lyon man searches out Rosenberg in the box, however, the striker is ruled offside.
18 minMore from Keown: "At the moment the Swedes are nice and compact. But all the football is coming from Ukraine. There is a little bit of tension in the home players early on, though."
18 minChance! First opening of the match and it comes to Sweden as Ibrahimovic releases a wonderful cross into the box. However, Pyatov punches the ball clear. Just delightful from Ibra.
17 minSweden are just starting to find their feet in this match. There's a really nice feel to the early stages of this one.
15 minAnother chance for Larsson to whip a cross in. However, it is just too long for Ibrahimovic and play is restarted with Andriy Pyatov.
15 minUkraine really are a nice football side. They pass the ball really well. However, still no goal threat from either side.
13 minSo nearly for Ola Toivonen but he just could not slip the ball through to Rosenberg. Meanwhile, Ukraine threaten on the break.
11 minChance for Sweden as Larsson whips a dangerous cross into the box, but it is too long. Amongst the tumble, the first yellow card of the match is handed to Kallstrom.
10 minWe haven't seen much from the Swedish midfield duo Rasmus Elm or Kim Kallstrom thus far. Nor Sebastian Larsson on the left.
8 minA word from former Liverpool midfielder Jan Molby: "Teams are reliant on their better players and for Sweden it's about getting the best out of Ibrahimovic. He plays a more withdrawn role now but he has become more of a team player," he told the BBC.
8 minStill the host nation continue to attack with Serhiy Nazarenko and Andriy Yarmolenko nice and bright.
6 minIbrahimovic is being deployed in a deeper role this evening behind Markus Rosenberg. Strange selection from Sweden with the latter playing no part in qualifying.
4 minReally has been a bright start from Ukraine. Plenty of possession, and nice swift movement in midfield.
3 minI've just seen the size of Ukraine defender Yevhen Khacheridi. Wow. He will certainly be a threat in the air.
2 minIt's Ukraine who have gathered possession of the ball in the early stages, however.
1 minLovely early feet from Ibrahimovic. There seems to be a perception in England that he isn't as good as he thinks he is. I could not disagree any more if I tried.
1 minHere we go then. Sweden will kick us off and underway.
19.44Just one final look at the teams and then we are underway.
19.43Here come the national anthems. Brilliant scenes.
19.42There have been allegations of corruption in Ukraine. Questions over its suitability to host the tournament. But tonight's just about football. And I don't think they would have it any other way.
19.42Ibrahimovic and Shevchenko stand side-by-side in the tunnel. Two fabolous strikers.
19.40Remember, this is the last game of the opening phase of fixtures. Have we saved the best to last?
19.37A word from former Arsenal defender Martin Keown: "I'm not surprised Shevchenko is starting tonight - since Ukraine gained independence he has been the one who has fliown the flag throughout Europe. Of course he's a little bit older now but he's still a goalscorer," he told the BBC.
19.35If Shevchenko scores for Ukraine tonight. I honestly think there will be a national holiday. What an incredible atmosphere there is inside the stadium.
19.33Aston Villa fans will have fond memories of Olof Mellberg. Meanwhile, Andreas Isaksson spent two years at Manchester City.
19.31There really is some incentive for these two teams. A win for either would take them top of Group D.
19.28In terms of Sweden. Much of their success will fall on the shoulders of Ibrahimovic. However, in Sebastian Larsson and Ola Toivonen they have plenty of talent on display.
19.25Much of their success will surely fall on the shoulders of their 35-year-old striker Shevchenko - who made his debut for his country in 1995.
19.23Ukraine boss Blokhin also recently stated that his defenders "don't tackle properly" and that his strikers don't score enough goals. Apart from that they are ok!
19.21The last three meetings between the two have ended with one win apiece. However, Ukraine have lost their last two friendly matches and are therefore not in the best of form.
19.19A word from Ibrahimovic prior to the match: "To experience a finals as team captain, it doesn't get any bigger than that. It's important to start well. I remember other final rounds where we did that, and we were able to just hold on during the following matches. And when we start off well, we become more self-confident," he told reporters.
19.17They also boast one of the finest strikers in Europe in their ranks in Zlatan Ibrahimovic. The Swede has netted in his last three internationals and has been handed the captaincy for the tournament.
19.15Former Bolton Wanderers striker Johan Elmander starts on the bench for Sweden. Meanwhile, Rasmus Elm is preferred in midfield to Anders Svensson.
19.15Despite Sweden's recent strong form, they have won just two of their last 10 games at the Euros. They did score in all 10 games in qualifying, however, and were one of only three sides to score 30 goals or more.
19.15The Ukrainians have yet to score a single goal in open play at a major tournament finals. However, they have been boosted by the return of striker Andriy Voronin. He is joined in attack by the veteran Andriy Shevchenko.
19.10Team News: Sweden: Isaksson; Lustig, Mellberg, Granqvist, Olsson; Elm, Kallstrom, Rosenberg, Larrson; Toivonen, Ibrahimovic
19.10Team News: Ukraine: Pyatov; Husyev, Khacheridi, Mykhalik, Selin; Tymoschchuk, Nazarenko, Konoplyanka; Yarmolenko; Shevchenko, Voronin
Written by
Matt Law
Matt Law
