Sweden Women and Australia Women will have to pick themselves up from semi-final disappointment when they face off in the third-place playoff of the Women's World Cup 2023. The Europeans' hopes of winning the tournament were ended by Spain, while the tournament co-hosts lost out to England in their semi-final tie. It has been Sweden who have finished third in two of the last three World Cups, and they once again are involved in this fixture after they were beaten in the last-four by Spain. Olga Carmona stepped up with the dramatic late winner to send her country through to a first World Cup final and leave Sweden competing for bronze. Co-hosts Australia had their bid for glory on home soil ended by England, who produced a superb display to win that semi-final clash 3-1 in Sydney.

Sam Kerr scored a stunning equaliser in that match, but it was not enough for the Matildas. Australia had never previously made it beyond the quarter-finals and will be determined to end what has been a hugely positive tournament both on and off the pitch in successful fashion. I am expecting a win or a draw for the Australians for the following reasons:

Firstly. Sweden are the 5th-best team in the World, according to FIFA World Ranking. In this World Cup, they have been excellent until the last round. They won first place in the group fairly easily and then eliminated two of the best teams in the World Cup, team USA, and Japan. But, in the Semi-Finals, Spain deservedly beat them. They have become used to participating in third-place playoffs, having lost three of their four semi-final appearances at the Women's World Cup. Interestingly, they have emerged victorious from all three of their playoff appearances.

Secondly. Australia's journey throughout their home tournament has captured a nation after they fought back from the brink of group stage elimination to progress to the Women's World Cup semi-finals for the very first time. Australia, one of the hosts of this World Cup, have already made history by reaching this stage of the tournament for the first time ever. Their biggest success in the World Cup, prior to this one, was 6th place in 2007 in China. In this World Cup, they finished 1st in a group with Nigeria, Canada, and Ireland and then beat two European teams: Denmark and France to get to the semi-finals. While the Women's World Cup trophy may allude them, the Matildas have put women's football on the map in their country. They will build on this success and want to sign off on a high in front of their home fans.

Sweden’s matches in the knockout stages have been particularly cagey, and with both teams' eyes on the bronze medal, a draw may settle it at the end of the 90 minutes play. But, this fixture often comes down to who is able to recover best from a semi-final defeat and it could be Australia who do so, with the added motivation of delivering in front of their home fans. For this, they might be able to nick a win here. So, a win or a draw for Australia are my expectations.

2023年女足世界杯第三名的决赛中，瑞典女足和澳大利亚女足将不得不从半决赛的失望中振作起来。欧洲人赢得比赛的希望被西班牙队终结，而比赛的共同主办国在半决赛中输给了英格兰队。瑞典队在过去的三届世界杯中两次获得第三名，他们在四强中被西班牙击败后再次参加了这次比赛。奥尔加·卡莫纳(Olga Carmona)在最后时刻戏剧性地制胜，帮助瑞典首次进入世界杯决赛，让瑞典争夺铜牌。在悉尼举行的半决赛中，共同东道主澳大利亚队在本土的荣耀之旅被英格兰队终结，英格兰队以3:1的出色表现赢得了比赛。

萨姆·科尔在那场比赛中打进了一个惊人的扳平比分的进球，但这对马蒂尔达斯来说还不够。澳大利亚此前从未进入过四分之一决赛，他们决心以一种成功的方式结束这一场无论是场内还是场外都非常积极的比赛。我预计澳大利亚队会赢或平局，原因如下:

首先。根据国际足联的世界排名，瑞典是世界上排名第五的球队。在本届世界杯上，他们一直表现出色，直到最后一轮。他们轻松获得小组第一，然后淘汰了世界杯上最好的两支球队，美国队和日本队。但是，在半决赛中，西班牙当之无愧地击败了他们。她们已经习惯了参加第三名的季后赛，在女足世界杯的四次半决赛中输掉了三次。有趣的是，他们三次进入季后赛都取得了胜利。

其次。澳大利亚女足从小组赛被淘汰的边缘奋起直追，首次晋级女足世界杯四强，整个主场比赛的旅程吸引了全国的目光。作为本届世界杯的东道主之一，澳大利亚有史以来第一次进入了世界杯的这个阶段，创造了历史。在此之前，他们在世界杯上取得的最大成功是2007年在中国取得的第六名。在本届世界杯上，他们与尼日利亚、加拿大和爱尔兰同组第一，然后击败丹麦和法国两支欧洲球队进入半决赛。虽然女足世界杯奖杯可能暗示着她们，但玛蒂尔达夫妇已经让女足在她们国家的地图上留下了印记。他们将在这次成功的基础上再接再厉，并希望在他们的主场球迷面前以一个很高的水平结束比赛。

瑞典队在淘汰赛阶段的比赛尤其谨慎，两队都着眼于铜牌，在90分钟的比赛结束时，平局可能会解决问题。但是，这场比赛往往取决于谁能最好地从半决赛的失败中恢复过来，澳大利亚可能会这样做，并在他们的主场球迷面前提供额外的动力。为此，他们或许能在这里取得胜利。所以，我的期望是澳大利亚取得一场胜利或平局。