Sweden absentees present 'real opportunity' for Ireland - Lisa Fallon

RTÉ Soccer analyst Lisa Fallon believes a host of absentees for Sweden makes the upcoming Euro 2025 qualifying double-header a huge opportunity for the Republic of Ireland to gain their first points of the campaign.

Eileen Gleeson's side opened a daunting group against two of the three highest ranked sides in the world in early April, losing 1-0 to France in Metz before a 2-0 loss to reigning continental champions England at the Aviva Stadium.

Sweden, sixth in the FIFA rankings and semi-finalists at the 2023 Women's World Cup, are the visitors to Dublin on Friday (live on RTÉ2 and the RTÉ Player) and the return game will follow on Tuesday at the Friends Arena in Solna, Stockholm.

Ireland faced the Nordic nation during the successful World Cup qualifying campaign and after an unfortunate 1-0 defeat at Tallaght Stadium, earned a creditable 1-1 draw in Gothenburg which was one of the first signs to highlight that the Girls in Green could compete with the globe's leading teams on a surer footing.

Speaking on the RTÉ Soccer Podcast, Fallon felt those recent experiences would boost confidence but that can also be coupled to a raft of absentees within the Swedish ranks.

"There's a real opportunity particularly when you look at the Sweden squad," she said.

Listen to the RTÉ Soccer podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.

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"They're missing Stina Blackstenius who is their taliswoman in terms of their goals. She's scored 31 goals for Sweden and in addition to that