Uwak stuns Sweden with late equalizer

Soccer Betting Lines

09/11/2007 - Chengdu, China (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Cynthia Uwak scored in the 82nd minute as Nigeria earned a surprising 1-1 tie with Sweden in the World Cup on Tuesday.

After going winless and being outscored 11-0 in the 2003 World Cup, Nigeria was considered a longshot to escape Group B, labeled the "Group of Death."

But Uwak, a FIFA Player of the Year nominee and the reigning African Woman Footballer of the Year, took advantage of one of her few touches, drilling home a left-footed shot late in the match.

Victoria Svensson scored in the 50th minute for Sweden.

Sweden, the 2003 World Cup runners-up, missed a golden opportunity to move to the top of the group. The United States, ranked No. 1 in the world, and North Korea, ranked fifth, tied 2-2 on Tuesday in the group's other game.

Nigeria will try to build on its performance against North Korea on Friday. Sweden plays the United States on Friday.

Sweden was dangerous from the opening whistle and had a shot in the second minute deflect off the fingertips of Nigeria goalie Precious Dede before hitting the crossbar.

Svensson had Sweden's next opportunity in the 17th minute when her shot went between a Nigeria defender's legs, taking a slight deflection that forced Dede to make an off-balance, diving save.

Sweden hit the crossbar again in the 31st minute when Svensson's shot rattled off the bar, came straight down on the line and bounced away from the goal.

Dede played well in the first half, making a few diving stops and coming off her line numerous times to prevent Sweden from getting more chances on goal.

Sweden finally broke through in the 50th minute when Hanna Ljungberg sent a pass to the top of the box to Svensson. She scored into the right side of the net for her sixth career World Cup goal.

Svensson had two in the 1999 Cup and three in the 2003 tournament.

Sweden looked comfortable with the 1-0 edge, but after Ljungberg was taken off in the 69th minute, the team struggled offensively.

Nigeria failed to create many great chances, but after being silent for nearly the entire game, Uwak finally got the opportunity she was waiting for.

The 21-year-old striker ran onto a failed clearance by Sweden's defense and blasted the ball into the left corner with just eight minutes remaining.

Uwak nearly scored again in the 85th minute when she was in one-on-one with Sweden goalie Hedvig Lindahl, but her shot went wide right.

Nigeria lost its two previous meetings with Sweden, including a 3-0 loss at the 2003 World Cup.

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