The main story of Portugal v. Sweden has to be the absence of Ibrahimovic. Queiroz was asked about that and he said that the team (collective spirit) is stronger without him.
I'm not sure about that. It's like saying that Portugal is stronger without Cristiano Ronaldo. I'm sure that these players give morale to the team because at any moment they're game changers. Like they say in Italian, 'Possono cambiare la partita in qualsiasi momento' (They can change the game at any moment).
Video Carlos Queiroz press conference 1 day before Portgal v. Sweden, March 27, 2009
(Queiroz desvaloriza ausência de Ibrahimovic)
Carlos Queiroz in Portuguese- "He's a brilliant player (É um jogador brilhante) but the strength of Sweden is the team. They've been working together for years. The coach knows what he can expect from each player at any moment. They have lots of experience and maturity (Têm muita experiência e maturidade). I'm not worried about Ibrahimovic. It's not because of him that we base our respect for the Sweden team. On the contrary, the team is stronger team-wise without him."
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