Credit: Tung Manh Phan

Richie Mills

Wed 1 April 2026 16:10, UK

Tottenham Hotspur boss Roberto De Zerbi will be encouraged by Lucas Bergvall’s telling cameo in Sweden’s World Cup play-off win over Poland.

In a winner-takes-all game at Strawberry Arena in Stockholm on Tuesday night, Sweden secured a thrilling 3-2 victory thanks to Viktor Gyokeres’ 88th-minute strike.

Bergvall came off the bench in the second half of this triumph, as was the case in their semi-final play-off win over Ukraine last week, as manager Graham Potter continues to manage his minutes.

The midfielder has played around an hour of first-team football for Tottenham since returning from an ankle injury and gained some valuable game time for Sweden over the past week.

As the 20-year-old looks forward to his first World Cup outing with Sweden this summer, Tottenham and new head coach De Zerbi will be pleased he is ready for their Premier League run-in.

Lucas Bergvall makes telling contribution for Sweden

In Sweden’s 3-1 win over Ukraine, Bergvall came on in the 77th minute, with the youngster having one shot on goal and a passing accuracy of 66.7 per cent.

Against Poland, Bergvall was introduced with 21 minutes remaining, and in that stretch, he had one shot on target, he created a chance, won a foul, had a 100 per cent tackle success, and he played a part in Gyokeres’ winner.

During his cameo against Poland, Bergvall looked sharp on the ball, was quick to fire deft balls up the pitch to kickstart attacks, while also getting stuck in with interceptions in the final third.

Bergvall broke up play in the centre of the park, possessed the ball with ease, and was involved in the build-up to Gyokeres’ decisive strike.

He was the injection of quality that Sweden needed to get over the line, although Bergvall did pick up a booking for his troubles.

If he can repeat this for Tottenham, their survival chances will get a big boost.

More to come from Tottenham’s Bergvall

Bergvall had to grow up fast last season as the teenager was thrown in at the deep end amid a raft of injury issues and a difficult Premier League campaign.

He played a big role in their Europa League triumph, but this season has had its challenges for the young Sweden international.

Various injuries have halted his progress, somewhat, in addition to Thomas Frank not getting the best out of him. As this Sofascore graphic shows below, there are positives to take from the campaign, but you feel he has an extra gear to go to.

Tottenham sit one point and one place ahead of the relegation zone. They haven’t won since 28 December. But Bergvall has been sidelined for much of that time.

Now that he is back fit, De Zerbi is likely to call on the Tottenham ace, and if he can get him firing on all cylinders, that will certainly help their cause in beating the drop.

Bergvall has been linked with a Tottenham exit if they go down, but Spurs fans will hope that never comes to pass.