Janne Andersson hailed the new, 'calmer' Emil Forsberg after his goals fired Sweden into the knockout stages of Euro 2020.
The RB Leipzig midfielder scored twice as the Swedes saw off a late Poland fightback to claim a 3-2 victory that sent them through as Group E winners.
Four of Forsberg's 12 goals for his country have come in 2021, and his manager puts that down to a recent change in temperament.
Andersson told Euro2020.com: "He's a bit calmer as a person. He's said himself that he feels more harmonious, and he's been better on the pitch.
"He's always been good with the national team, and it's great he can be the decisive factor for us."
Sweden had not conceded a goal at Euro 2020 coming into Wednesday's game but were breached twice as a Robert Lewandowski-inspired Poland fought back.
However, while Andersson is keen to see his side quickly eliminate that porousness, he was pleased with their fluency going forward.
"I think opponents think we're difficult to play against, and that's how it should be," he added.
"Poland's first goal was a fantastic piece of individual skill. [Lewandowski is] a skilful player – probably the best striker in the world right now – and he scored twice.
"We're a little disappointed with that, but we scored three.
"In the second half, we defended a little too deep. We'll have to look at the game again, analyse it and see what we can do better.
"Overall, I can't say I'm unhappy – but there are things we can improve on."
Sweden now have six days to prepare for their last-16 tie against Ukraine - news that comes as music to Andersson's ears.
"It's always good to have more time to prepare," he continued.
"The most important thing is recovery, getting fluids on board and helping the body recover. On Saturday, we'll start to think about who the opponent is going to be and creating more energy for the game."
As for Poland, captain Lewandowski lamented poor fortune for his country's group-stage exit.
The Bayern Munich man hit the bar twice in quick succession in a goalless first half and felt that somewhat summed up their tournament.
"We have been unlucky at this tournament. We had many chances to score but did not convert enough of them,” he said.
"And our rivals sometimes had half a chance and they scored. Me too — those two headers hit the crossbar.
"We are sad and disappointed. Maybe we were lacking quality somehow, but we gave all we had."
Cristiano Ronaldo equalled Ali Daei's record of 109 international goals as he scored two penalties in Portugal's 2-2 Euro 2020 draw with France.
The Portugal captain's fourth and fifth strikes of the tournament took him level with Iran great Daei, whose benchmark has stood since he retired in 2006.
Ronaldo's opener had taken him clear of Miroslav Klose for the most World Cup and European Championship goals combined, a tally that improved to 21 with his second spot-kick.
That equaliser was only enough to take defending European champions Portugal through in third place in Group F to meet Belgium in Seville in the last 16.
Ronaldo will get his opportunity to pass Daei on Sunday, although a tough path to the final awaits Portugal and their skipper even if they defeat the Red Devils.
Cristiano Ronaldo equalled Ali Daei's all-time international goalscoring record as he held his nerve to haul Portugal to a 2-2 draw with France and into the knockout rounds of Euro 2020.
Ronaldo scored the first of three penalties awarded by Spanish referee Mateu Lahoz at the Puskas Arena, although his old Real Madrid strike partner Karim Benzema levelled from the spot and put the world champions ahead at the start of the second half.
At that stage, the holders were staring at elimination as Les Blues eyed a measure of revenge for their Euro 2016 final defeat, but Ronaldo stepped up again at his country's hour of need when Jules Kounde was penalised for handball.
Having already overhauled Miroslav Klose – whose countrymen Germany flirted with disaster before salvaging a 2-2 draw against Hungary in Munich – to become the leading combined scorer at World Cups and European Championships combined, Ronaldo beat Hugo Lloris again to pull level with the mark set by Iran's Daei – one that has long been in the five-time Ballon d'Or winner's sights.
Paul Pobga unlocked the Portugal defence with a glorious 16th-minute throughball, although Kylian Mbappe's finish was not of the same standard and Rui Patricio saved.
Opposite number Hugo Lloris did not cover himself in glory when he rashly tried to punch Joao Moutinho's free-kick and clattered into Danilo Pereira. The France captain was cautioned and unable to atone as Ronaldo sent him the wrong way from the spot.
He was quickly followed into the book by Antoine Griezmann and Lucas Hernandez as Lahoz placed himself at the centre of the contest, and the official handed France a lifeline as he penalised Nelson Semedo for blocking off Mbappe and Benzema dispatched from 12 yards.
Another delicious Pogba pass completed a swift turnaround, as Benzema got away from Ruben Dias to coolly slot home two minutes into the second half.
Ronaldo almost found an instant response when he met Raphael Guerreiro's and he levelled with an hour played, Lahoz pointing to the spot once more when Kounde handled the Juventus star's delivery.
Pogba remained the game's outstanding player and Rui Patricio clawed out a stunning 25-yard effort from the Manchester United man before springing up to sharply deny Griezmann on the follow-up.
In stoppage time, Lahoz passed up the chance to give the fourth spot-kick of a fairly remarkable personal outing and a VAR check spared Bruno Fernandes for a clumsy challenge on fellow substitute Kingsley Coman.
What does it mean? France top 'group of death' as Portugal and Germany live to fight another day
The value of Benzema's brace was born out in France topping the group as the only undefeated team, earning a comparatively favourable tie against Switzerland in Bucharest. By contrast, Portugal travel to Seville to take on the world's number-one ranked side Belgium and Germany must face England at Wembley.
Germany scraped through to the knockout stages of Euro 2020 and set up a last-16 showdown against England after Leon Goretzka's late equaliser earned them a 2-2 draw with Hungary.
Adam Szalai of Mainz, who has spent most of his career in the Bundesliga, gave Hungary the lead in Munich after 11 minutes to leave Germany facing an early exit.
There was a brief reprieve when Kai Havertz scored a 66th-minute header, but just 91 seconds later Joachim Low's men were caught napping and Andras Schafer took full advantage in restoring Hungary's lead.
Goretzka rescued Germany from their first exit at this stage of the competition since 2004, and sent Hungary crashing out in the process.
Second seed Elina Svitolina crashed out of the Viking International in Eastbourne at the last-16 stage on Wednesday with a straight sets defeat to Elena Rybakina.
The world number five lost 6-4 7-6 (7-3) to 21st-ranked Rybakina, whose reward is a meeting with Coco Gauff's conqueror Anastasija Sevastova in the quarter-finals.
Third seed Bianca Andreescu of Canada also lost in straight sets, Anett Kontaveit of Estonia beating her 6-3 6-3.
And it was the same story for fourth seed Iga Swiatek, though she at least took a set as she was beaten by Daria Kasatkina.
It took an impressive rally from Russia's Kasatkina to bounce back from losing the first en route to a 4-6 6-0 6-1 success.
She will now face Jelena Ostapenko, who beat Ons Jabeur 5-7 6-4 6-3.
In fact, top seed Aryna Sabalenka was the only seed to avoid a surprise exit on Wednesday as she cruised through.
The Belarussian, ranked fourth in the world, beat Alison Riske 6-1 6-4 in just over an hour to set up a clash with Camila Giorgi.
Giorgi had earlier followed up a win over defending champion Karolina Pliskova in the last round by beating Shelby Rogers 6-3 4-6 6-2.
There was no such string of shocks at Wednesday's other WTA event, the Bad Homburg Open in Germany, though first and second seeds Petra Kvitova and Victoria Azarenka needed three sets to progress.
Kvitova lost a second-set tie-break as she beat Ann Li 6-2 6-7 (4-7) 6-1 to reach the quarters, while Azarenka defeated Alize Cornet 6-4 3-6 7-6 (9-7).
Angelique Kerber, the fourth seed, progressed more smoothly, earning a comfortable 6-0 6-2 win over Russia's Anna Blinkova.
And Nadia Podoroska saw off the challenge of Patricia Maria Tig, winning 7-6 (7-4) 2-6 6-4.
Cristiano Ronaldo became the leading goalscorer at the World Cup and European Championship combined with his penalty against France.
The Portugal star, who scored twice in the 3-0 win over Hungary on matchday one and then once against Germany, is the first player in history to reach 20 goals across both competitions.
The 36-year-old overtook former Germany striker Miroslav Klose, who managed 19 goals over his career at the two tournaments.
Ronaldo this year became the first player to appear at five different European Championships, having made his tournament debut back in 2004.
He is the leading goalscorer at the event with 13, four more than previous record-holder Michel Platini, and he has made the most appearances at the Euros and World Cup (41).
Ronaldo's goal in Budapest also ended his barren run against France. He had never previously scored against Les Bleus in six appearances, making the world champions the international opponents he had faced most often without netting.
Dominic Thiem will seek the advice of a specialist in Barcelona after suffering an injury scare ahead of Wimbledon next week.
Number two seed Thiem retired due to a wrist injury when 5-2 up in the opening set against Adrian Mannarino in the Mallorca Championships on Tuesday.
An MRI conducted at a Mallorca hospital was inconclusive, so the US Open champion will now undergo further tests.
In an update on Wednesday, Thiem wrote on social media: "Yesterday during the match I had a problem with my wrist.
"I went immediately to do an MRI at the hospital in Palma de Mallorca. The results weren't that clear and I have decided to go to Barcelona to check with a specialist.
"I hope I can get the results and a clear diagnosis in the next days."
The ATP 250 event continued without him in Mallorca, as Roberto Bautista Agut moved into the quarter-finals with a 6-3 7-5 triumph over Italian Stefano Travaglia.
More Spanish success on home soil arrived as Pablo Carreno Busta won 6-4 6-4 against Jiri Vesely.
In the doubles, Novak Djokovic and Carlos Gomez-Herrera saw off top seeds Marcel Granollers and Horacio Zeballos to reach the last four in that competition.
Djokovic appears to be enjoying himself as he continues to prepare for Wimbledon, saying: "This was a huge win for us, beating one of the best doubles players in the world after losing the first set.
"We are having a lot of fun on the court. I thought we played well even though we lost the first set."
There was a major upset at the Viking International in Eastbourne, meanwhile, with number one seed Gael Monfils suffering a shock last-16 defeat to Australia's Max Purcell – ranked number 283 in the world.
Purcell, who is only in the tournament as a lucky loser, claimed a huge 6-4 5-7 6-4 win in a battle lasting over two hours.
Monfils fired down 16 aces and fought back after being within two points of defeat in the second set but was ultimately beaten and has not made an ATP quarter-final since February 2020.
"It feels unbelievable," said Purcell. "I thought I'd come out and have a go.
"I've struggled to get into any singles events over the past nine months and primarily played doubles, so to get on a run here, on my favourite surface, is great."
Purcell will take on Andreas Seppi – a comfortable winner over Emil Ruusuvuori – in the last eight.
While Monfils crashed out, there was less drama for the second and third seeds.
Alex de Minaur won 6-3 6-4 against home hope Liam Broady, while Lorenzo Sonego was a 6-4 6-2 victor in his contest with John Millman.
Sergio Busquets had to wipe away the tears after reflecting on his experience of missing Spain's opening two Euro 2020 matches after testing positive for coronavirus.
The Barcelona midfielder was not part of Spain's squad for their Group E draws with Sweden or Poland after being made to self-isolate.
However, Busquets returned to the starting line-up for Wednesday's 5-0 win against Slovakia as Spain equalled the largest margin of victory in a European Championship game.
Own goals from Martin Dubravka and Juraj Kucka bookended strikes from Aymeric Laporte, Pablo Sarabia and Ferran Torres in La Roja's emphatic victory in Seville.
Spain are the fifth different side to win by five goals in the competition after France (1984), Denmark (1984), the Netherlands (2000) and Sweden (2004).
And the record-equalling win for Spain was a particularly emotional occasion for Busquets, who was named the official man of the match for his impressive midfield display.
"I'm excited to be here," he said through tears in his post-match interview. "I had a pretty bad time at home for 10 days not knowing if I would return or not.
"This result was what we needed. The fans were behind us and we played well from the beginning. We were so much stronger today and got the luck we didn't previously have.
"I accept the criticism we have faced, but not the lack of respect and more from people who have also been here."
Busquets won all three of his aerial duels against Slovakia, gained possession five times and played a joint-high two key passes.
He was taken off with around 20 minutes to play, but the midfielder put that down as a precautionary measure.
"I feel very well," he added. "Just before I was taken off I felt my calf a bit and the coach did not want to risk it.
"Hopefully now I can continue to accumulate minutes. Today is another step for me and now I'm prepared for anything that comes."
Spain needed a victory to guarantee a place in the last 16, where Croatia now await in Copenhagen next Monday, after being held by Sweden and Poland.
The victory for La Roja was their landmark 50th at major tournaments, making them the fourth European side to reach that milestone after Germany, Italy and France.
Sarabia, who scored the third of Spain's goals and assisted Torres' flicked finish, hopes his side can use the victory to build confidence in the knockout stages.
"We needed this to restore people's enthusiasm," he said. "The team played 20 very good minutes, with brutal intensity. We deserved the victory.
"We know the Croatia game will be difficult, but we also know the potential of this team."
Sweden secured their place in the knockout stages of Euro 2020 as group winners as they sent Poland crashing out with a 3-2 victory in Saint Petersburg.
The Swedes looked to be cruising into the last 16 after going two up through Emil Forsberg only for a double from Robert Lewandowski to set up a nervy finish.
However, with Paulo Sousa's side pushing for the winner they needed to avoid an early exit, they were hit on the break and condemned to defeat by substitute Viktor Claesson.
That stoppage-time goal ensured Sweden leapfrogged Spain into top spot in Group E, while Poland dropped out of the tournament with just a single point to their name.
None of the previous 26 meetings between Sweden and Poland had ended goalless and the prospect of a bore draw was eliminated inside just two minutes.
Forsberg had some poor Polish defending to thank for the opener - the second-fastest goal in Euros history (81 seconds) - which came when he bundled past multiple challenges before applying a left-footed finish.
Sweden continued to apply pressure in the aftermath, but they were indebted to some uncharacteristically poor finishing from Lewandowski with 17 minutes gone.
After heading onto the crossbar from a wicked corner delivery, the prolific Bayern Munich man somehow did the same with a close-range follow-up despite having a virtually open goal to aim at.
The Poles were subsequently restricted to long-range efforts from Piotr Zielinski, though he did at least test Robin Olsen with two ambitious efforts that sandwiched the half-time break.
But it looked like their race was run when Forsberg finished powerfully after a brilliant breakaway down the right-hand side from Dejan Kulusevski.
However, Lewandowski more than atoned for his glaring miss earlier in the match two minutes later, scampering away down the left-hand side and cutting in to unleash an unstoppable drive into the far corner.
Poland thought they had equalised just past the hour mark when Jakub Swierczok diverted a cross home only for the linesman's flag to quickly bring an end to the celebrations.
They did get their goal with six minutes of normal time remaining, though, Lewandowski making no mistake when a cross dropped to him in space in the box.
That strike set up a grandstand finish which Poland dominated, but they were ultimately undone by Claesson's slick finish, which came after more good work from Kulusevski.
New Zealand claimed victory in the World Test Championship final as they chased down a fourth-innings target of 139 with eight wickets to spare at the Ageas Bowl.
Captain Kane Williamson and Ross Taylor combined in an unbroken 96-run stand as the Black Caps, so often the bridesmaids through the years, became the inaugural winners of the tournament in the final hour of play.
Rain had threatened to spoil the showpiece fixture in Southampton, but the addition by the International Cricket Council of a reserve day allowed for an absorbing conclusion to proceedings.
India had resumed in the morning on 64-2, Cheteshwar Pujara and Virat Kohli at the crease looking to build on a precarious 32-run lead.
However, both overnight batsmen fell early in proceedings to the impressive Kyle Jamieson, Kohli caught behind for 13 before Pujara (15) fell soon after, leaving the score at 72-4 as New Zealand struck two huge blows.
It would have been even better had Tim Southee held onto a chance from Rishabh Pant when he was on just five, Jamieson the unfortunate bowler. The left-hander went on to top score with 41, a crucial knock in the circumstances.
Trent Boult dismissed Pant – caught superbly by Henry Nicholls having skied the ball high into the air – as he finished with figures of 3-39, also seeing off Ajinkya Rahane (15) and Ravindra Jadeja (16).
There were also two late wickets for Southee – who ended up with 4-48 in the innings – as India slipped from 142-5 to 170 all out.
Ravichandran Ashwin gave India a glimmer of hope when he removed both New Zealand openers, Tom Latham the first to go when stumped for nine before Devon Conway was trapped lbw having contributed 19.
Yet Williamson and Taylor, who finished 52 and 47 not out respectively, did not panic when coming together at 44-2, slowly building a partnership that would blossom with the finishing line in sight.
Standing tall on the biggest stage
Jamieson has been a revelation for the Black Caps in Test cricket. He finished with stunning match figures of 7-61 from 46 overs, of which 22 were maidens.
In total, 83 per cent of his deliveries were pitched outside off stump, the highest rate of any bowler for New Zealand. The plan worked too, as six of his seven wickets came from balls landing in that area.
Middling returns from big names
No Indian player managed to post a half-century. Pujara, Kohli and Rahane were crucial in helping their team qualify for the final, but their low returns in the game continued a recent trend.
Since the beginning of 2019, the trio have registered a combined total of six Test centuries. In the two years prior to that, however, they had 18 hundreds between them in the longest format.
Spain profited from Martin Dubravka's goalkeeping howler and then turned on the style to thrash Slovakia 5-0 and book their place in the last 16 of Euro 2020.
Luis Enrique's men required a win in Wednesday's clash to guarantee a last-16 spot after drawing their first two games and were given a huge helping hand by Dubravka.
The Slovakia keeper saved an Alvaro Morata penalty early on – the fifth in a row Spain have missed – before comically flapping the ball into his own net with half an hour played.
That put Spain on their way to an emphatic win, the first time they have ever scored five times in a European Championship match, after Aymeric Laporte's first international goal and strikes from Pablo Sarabia and Ferran Torres before Juraj Kucka's own goal.
Spain were awarded a penalty inside the first 12 minutes after VAR intervened and adjudged Jakub Hromada fouled Koke when attempting to clear the ball.
Dubravka dived to his right and got two hands to the powerful attempt but, after chances went begging for Sarabia and Pedri, the keeper went from hero to zero.
Sarabia's long-range shot looped into the air after striking the crossbar and Dubravka, under a bit of pressure from Morata, inexplicably pushed the ball into his own net.
Dubravka could have done better for Spain's second goal, too, as Gerard Moreno beat the marauding keeper to a ball and crossed for Laporte to head into the top-right corner.
Spain were in complete control of the game when Sarabia swept home Jordi Alba's pass into the bottom-right corner with 56 minutes on the clock.
Slovakia still had a chance of advancing as one of the best third-placed sides, but substitute Torres flicked Sarabia's cross past Dubravka just 44 seconds after entering the pitch and Kucka knocked the ball into his own net soon after for Spain's fifth.
Uruguay face Bolivia in the Copa America on Thursday and need Edinson Cavani and Luis Suarez to start producing in attack.
After losing their opening match to Argentina, Oscar Tabarez's men drew 1-1 with Chile on matchday two to breathe a bit of life into their campaign.
The goal was their first since November 2020, yet it came via Chile midfielder Arturo Vidal, who turned into his own net under pressure from Suarez.
Uruguay's problems in attack are clear: they have the lowest shooting accuracy at the Copa America (20 per cent), and the worst shot conversion rate (five per cent).
That is in spite of the fact they boast a strike partnership in Suarez and Cavani who have plundered 114 international goals between them. They have only managed a combined seven shots at these finals, six of which came against Chile.
Uruguay do, at least, have a strong recent record against Bolivia, who have lost to Paraguay and Chile at this tournament and only won one of their past 12 meetings with La Celeste – a qualifier for the 2014 World Cup.
Indeed, Bolivia are on a 10-game winless run in Copa America matches played in Brazil and have not beaten Uruguay at a neutral venue since 1949.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Bolivia – Roberto Fernandez
Fernandez belied his inexperience with a strong performance against Chile, making six clearances and four interceptions at left-back, with only two team-mates having more than his 67 touches of the ball.
He could find himself in with a tough battle against Federico Valverde down the Uruguay right.
Uruguay – Facundo Torres
Torres attempted three shots and created two chances against Chile, as many as Cavani managed, despite the 21-year-old only coming on for the final 30 minutes.
This could be a good opportunity for Tabarez to hand the Penarol forward a chance to impress from the start.
KEY OPTA FACTS
- Uruguay have lost only one of their past 12 games against Bolivia in all competitions (W8 D3), 1-0 in La Paz in World Cup 2014 qualifying.
- Uruguay have won 11 of their 13 games against Bolivia at neutral venues (D1 L1). The only win for Bolivia was in 1949, 3-2 in Rio de Janeiro in the Copa America.
- Bolivia have lost their past five games and have failed to win in their previous 10 Copa America matches played in Brazil (D2 L8). They have won only four games in the competition in this country, all of them at the 1949 edition.
- Bolivia have the lowest possession average (31.2 per cent) but the highest forward passes percentage (39.4 per cent of their 597 total passes) at the tournament.
- Uruguay have the lowest shooting accuracy at the Copa America 2021: only the 20 per cent (4/20) of their shots have been on target. They have the lowest shot conversion rate, too (five per cent).
Chile will aim to maintain their unbeaten start under head coach Martin Lasarte and put some pressure on Copa America Group A leaders Argentina when they face Paraguay on Thursday.
La Roja have won three and drawn three of their six matches since experienced coach Lasarte replaced Reinaldo Rueda in February.
That includes 1-1 draws against Argentina and Uruguay, either side of a 1-0 win against Bolivia, to leave them second in their Copa America group with one game to go.
Chile are assured of a place in the knockout stages, but Lasarte is eager to avoid going through in fourth place, which would mean a quarter-final tie with favourites Brazil.
"We do not want to qualify in last place. Avoiding Brazil is key as they are the most powerful side in the tournament," he said.
"The draw against Uruguay, who have a lot of great players, was not bad. I'd have liked a win, but to draw was good."
Paraguay still have work to do if they are to progress out of the group, having followed up a 3-1 win over Bolivia in their first game with a 1-0 loss to Argentina last time out.
Papu Gomez scored the only goal of the game after 10 minutes for Argentina and Paraguay could not find a leveller, despite having more of the ball.
Los Guaranies will now be looking to overcome Chile in order to stay in the hunt for a top-four spot that would see them advance.
Head coach Eduardo Berizzo said: "We played a solid game defensively against Argentina and we have to continue with that.
"The attitude has been very good from the team and the players have given everything. We weren't rewarded for our efforts in the last game but we will try again."
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Chile – Claudio Bravo
The Real Betis goalkeeper is the oldest player taking part in the Copa America at 38 years, but he is showing that age is just a number.
He has made the most saves among keepers to have played at least two games with 11 in total across three appearances (3.7 per game on average).
Paraguay – Alejandro Romero Gamarra
Gamarra has only played twice so far in this year's Copa America, yet he has created more chances than any other player in the competition (12) prior to Wednesday's games.
The prolific Al-Taawoun attacker was also on target in his side's victory over Bolivia to make it four goals in eight senior caps for Paraguay.
KEY OPTA FACTS
– Paraguay are unbeaten in their last four games against Chile on neutral soil (W2 D2).
– Chile have not conceded more than one goal in any of their six games under head coach Lasarte.
– Paraguay have the highest possession in this year's Copa America (66.8 per cent) and have created 16.5 chances per game, more than any other side.
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