Anthony Elanga admitted he kept urging Sweden forward without realising a draw was enough to send them through from Japan vs Sweden. Sweden secured their place in the World Cup knockout stages for the eighth time in their history after a 1-1 draw with Japan, and the misunderstanding was the part everyone talked about afterwards.

Potter's reaction to Elanga's confusion

Graham Potter did not sound annoyed, he sounded amused. "That explains a few things. We couldn't have been clearer... Bless him! But I love him," he said after Elanga's post-match admission that he had not realised a point was enough.

The Sweden manager had his reasons for the team selection too. "We analysed the game against the Netherlands. We had to defend the box and wide areas better [today]. We decided to use Jacob's attributes because I think he's a fantastic goalkeeper. His distribution was very impressive. Anthony comes in and offers a counter-attack threat and his pace is destabilising for the opponent."

That reading fit the match. Japan broke the deadlock in the 56th minute when Daizen Maeda finished off a slick passing move, before Elanga levelled it by cutting inside from the right and scoring with his weaker left foot. Alexander Isak then came inches away from a winner when his late header rattled the crossbar.

Elanga's tournament form and Sweden's escape

Elanga's goal was his second of the tournament, and it came in a competition where he has been used sparingly. Across 3 World Cup appearances in 2026, he has 1 goal in 89 minutes, which means he has averaged 29.7 minutes per appearance.

He also said Sweden played better than against Holland and could have scored more goals. That fits the broader picture of his tournament so far, with his strike against the Netherlands earning a 7.9 rating and his opener showing up again in a game Sweden needed to steady.

The question over whether this was another goal for Newcastle's winger in back-to-back matches is less secure from the match data alone, but his influence is clear enough. Sweden are through, Potter liked the pace he got on the break, and Elanga has added a second goal to his tournament tally in a game that ended 1-1.

Written by Jack Mercer with AI-assisted research, cross-checked against 2 outlets. How we work →