Hamren proud in defeat

Sweden boss Erik Hamren was quick to praise his side, despite seeing them exit the European Championships after a 1-0 defeat to Belgium.

Hamren’s side needed to win on Thursday night to have a chance of qualifying and they were only beaten by a late goal from Roma midfielder Radja Nainggolan.

The 28-year-old produced a stunning strike in the 84th minute to break Swedish hearts as Hamren’s men ended up finishing bottom of Group E.

Sweden only picked up one point from their three games after defeats to Belgium, Italy and a draw with the Republic of Ireland. It was also a historic day, with striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Andreas Isaksson and Kim Kallstrom all retiring from international football.

Ibrahimovic has been described as irreplaceable by Hamren but he admitted his side gave their all for their country. He told the UEFA website: “Unearthing a new Zlatan? No, he is special, he is unique.

I don’t think that in a small country like Sweden you will find another player like him. “I’m very disappointed. We were talking before the game about the honour of representing Sweden and of being here, but I couldn’t have asked for much more from my players. I’m proud of them, even though we lost.

“I hoped Zlatan would have had a better finish. The same goes for [Andreas] Isaksson and [Kim] Kallstrom, who have performed well for a long time and are also ending their Sweden careers.”

Belgium’s win now sees them move into the last 16 where they will play Hungary and they can now be backed at odds of 7.00 to go all the way and win the European Championships this summer.