U21 European Championships 2015 Final: Sweden vs. Portugal Score and Reaction

Sweden shocked favourites Portugal to win the 2015 UEFA Under-21 European Championship, emerging victorious after a thrilling penalty shootout, 4-3. Neither team could find the net in 120 minutes, and goalkeeper Patrik Carlgren emerged as the big hero in the shootout, stopping two penalties.

The Swedes had several chances to win the matches in extra time, as Portugal had wasted all their energy in the opening 60 minutes, but both defences held firm throughout the match. William Carvalho missed the final spot-kick, an unfortunate end to what was a fantastic tournament for the powerful midfielder.

Portugal were the favourites coming into the final, and from the opening minute, the team pushed forward in search of a goal. Ricardo Pereira flashed a shot just wide of the goal before standout midfielder Sergio Oliveira hit the crossbar with a wonderful free-kick from a long way out.    

The Independent's Joe Krishnan wasn't surprised the Portuguese side started in dominant fashion:

Sweden's biggest strength is their resilient defending, however, and despite the early dominance, Portugal couldn't find the opening goal. The Swedes even managed to be dangerous on the counter-attack, although the better chances certainly fell to their opponents.

Ivan Cavaleiro's mobility gave the Swedish defence fits, but the striker struggled to time his run. On several occasions, a promising piece of attacking was brought to an end because he couldn't hold his runs, and Bleacher Report's Sam Tighe had a piece of advice for the youngster:

Joao Mario should have done better when a fantastic cross fell right in his feet, but his rushed shot hit a Swedish defender. On the other end of the pitch, the Swedes started to get a grip on the midfield battle, using their physicality against the dangerous Carvalho.

Just Football was particularly impressed with Simon Tibbling, as Sweden started to remind him more and more of the Atletico Madrid squad that made the Champions League final in the 2013-14 season:

The final good chance of the first half fell to Sweden, as Abdul Khalili fired a shot well wide while Tibbling was waiting to his side in promising position.

Betway had to point out the obvious:

The start of the second half brought much of the same, with Portugal controlling the ball and looking for the opening. But Sweden were a lot more adventurous on the counter, and John Guidetti came close to opening the score with a powerful strike that just went over.

To the surprise of many, Portugal then made the decision to take Oliveira off the pitch. For Tighe, he's undoubtedly the youngster who most made a name for himself at the U21 European Championships: 

Sweden continued to grow into the match, and Portugal couldn't really find the gaps in the defence with any consistency. Guidetti took too much time to unleash a shot from a promising position, a stern warning to the Portuguese defence. After all, Sweden scored the bulk of their group-stage goals after the 80th minute.

Guidetti had another chance just minutes later after a mad scramble in front of the Portuguese goal somehow failed to result in a goal. The Press Association's Simon Peach credited goalkeeper Jose Sa for the crucial save:

Neither team could find a late winner, meaning the final of the 2015 U21 European Championships went to extra time. Sweden continued their push early in the first period, as Portugal appeared to tire rapidly. Khalili's aim still wasn't sharp enough, blasting another shot wide of the post to end a promising attack.

Portugal were struggling now, and Sweden were obviously the fitter team. Guidetti's physical style of play was starting to take its toll on the defence, and STV Sport's Stefan Bienkowski appreciated the way the forward approached the game:

As is so often the case, neither side were willing to take any chances with penalties right around the corner, and the second period saw few chances.  

In the penalty shootout, Toze's strike provided some controversy, as it was unclear whether the ball had crossed the line after hitting the bar. Replays confirmed it did, but not by much. Ricardo Esgaio and Khalili missed back-to-back penalties to keep the shootout close, and needing to score to keep his team in it, Carvalho's shot was parried by Carlgren.

Tighe noticed the stopper was quite far off his line to make either of his two saves, but in high-pressure situations like these, that rarely results in a retake:

The result is a shock given the way Portugal cruised to the final and the number of players who established themselves as the stars of tomorrow during their run.

Oliveira may have been the biggest find of this year's tournament, but no player stood out more than his more established team-mate, Bernardo Silva. The midfielder failed to make his mark on the final, but he was phenomenal throughout the rest of the tournament and should be a popular name in transfer talks.

Sweden's Oscar Lewicki gave Silva plenty of praise before the final, knowing full well what the midfielder was capable of, as reported by Simon Hart and Chris Parrott of UEFA.com:

"

The No10 Bernardo Silva is a special talent and you have to keep an extra eye on him. I think we handled him quite well in the group game, so we [need to do] a lot of the good things we did then and improve on some things. It [will be] a great game to play in. I've had a few great matches in my career but I hope this one’s going to be the best.

"

Other standouts were Carvalho, Domenico Berardi, Kevin Volland and Jan Kliment. But all of these players have one thing in common: They didn't win the tournament. Sweden, with far fewer stars than all of the favourites, displayed tremendous energy and resilience from their opening match against Italy all the way through the final, once again proving tactics and character can go toe-to-toe with superior talent.

That's not to say the Swedes don't have any talented players, with Guidetti and Isaac Kiese Thelin standing out, and the future of Swedish football looks bright indeed with these youngsters close to joining the senior side.

Follow @ReverschPass