Sweden gave themselves an excellent chance of progressing to the Round of 16 by beating Montenegro 3-0 and Slovakia 3-2 in their first two matches in Gothenburg, but home advantage was sure to be tested by reigning world and Olympic champions, Italy.
The backing from the Scandinavium crowd was with them, but going 4-0 down in the opening set didn't help the Swedish cause. Another strong run from the Italians, turning a 7-4 lead into 12-4, was enough to hold them at bay at take the first set, 25-18.
Italy had won their first two matches by 3-0 scorelines, yet they came close to dropping a set for the first time in the competition in the second.
Sweden again began on the backfoot but recovered to level three times, including at 9-9, but couldn't get the go-ahead point before Italy grew the lead back to four. However, the Swedes rallied, levelling at 17-all before going two points clear at 20-18 and 22-20. Yet, Italy proved their worth when it mattered, winning five of the final six points to take the set, 25-23.
In the third, Sweden kept pace early on but after a 5-0 run put Italy 11-5 clear, the Mediterranean side gradually increased their advantage, winning the set 25-14 and the match 3-0.
After a rest day on Monday 24th, Sweden will return to action on the 25th against Croatia before completing their group stage against France the following day. They sit in third place in Group D, and a win over Croatia and other results going their way will see them reach the last 16.
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