Anthony Elanga experiences despair despite saving Sweden's World Cup dream

Anthony Elanga collapsed to the ground in frustration after Sweden's 1-1 draw against Japan during the World Cup, mistakenly believing that his team's tournament was over. Despite finishing a point behind Japan in Group F, Sweden actually secured advancement into the knockout stages, qualifying as one of the higher-ranked third-place teams.

Elanga, unaware of this vital information, urged his teammates to continue pressing for a second goal, convinced that only a victory could keep their World Cup hopes alive. "I just shouted, come on, we can go for more... I got cramp at the end but didn't want to stop running," he explained after realizing they qualified only after the final whistle.

His focused determination earned him a light scolding from teammate Alexander Isak, who remarked, "He got a little scolding from me there. He was a little frustrated at the end of the match and you can understand that now." Elanga's confusion was shared by goalkeeper Jacob Widell Zetterstrom, making his World Cup debut, who admitted, "I was just as clueless."

Sweden's head coach Graham Potter remarked with a smile that Elanga's misunderstanding was innocent. "It couldn't have been any clearer for him. He's obviously thinking about something else, bless him. I love him at the moment, but dear me," he noted.

Sweden's progression to the round of 32 follows a mixed group stage campaign. They thrashed Tunisia 5-1 in their opener but lost 5-1 to the Netherlands six days later. The draw with Japan meant they concluded their group matches needing to wait to see their next opponent. Japan will face Brazil in the next round, while the Netherlands will take on Morocco.