Sweden clip Canada to advance to W’Cup quarter-final

PARIS (AP):

Stina Blackstenius scored early in the second half and Sweden advanced to the quarter-finals at the Women's World Cup with a 1-0 victory over Canada yesterday.

Blacktenius scored in the 55th minute. Canada had a chance to pull even in the 69th, but goalkeeper Hedvig Lindahl stopped Janine Beckie's penalty kick after a handball was called on Kosovare Asllani.

Ninth-ranked Sweden will face No. 2 Germany in a quarter-final on Saturday in Rennes. Germany advanced to the quarter-finals for the eighth straight time, beating African champions Nigeria 3-0 last Saturday.

Sweden were eliminated with a 4-1 round-of-16 loss to Germany four years ago at the World Cup in Canada.

Beckie took the penalty rather than captain Christine Sinclair, whose 182 goals remain two shy of matching the record set by retired American Abby Wambach.

Sinclair, who had a goal in Canada's final group stage match against the Netherlands, is the second player to score in five straight World Cups, joining Brazil's Marta. Eight of Sinclair's goals have come against Sweden.

Sweden finished second in their group behind the defending champions USA. The Swedes wrapped up the group with a 2-0 loss to the Americans, who they famously knocked out of the quarter-finals at the 2016 Olympics.

Sweden have been to all eight World Cups since the women's tournament started in 1991. Its best finish was runner-up in 2003.

Fifth-ranked Canada, which finished second in its group after a 2-1 loss to the Dutch, has bronze medals in the last two Olympics, but fell to England in the quarter-finals at the 2015 World Cup on home soil.