Easy victory for Sweden at Under-21 Championships

Tournaments hosts Sweden has a perfect start to their UEFA Under-21 Championships campaign, beating Belarus 5-1 in Malmo.

An impressive distance strike from Sergei Kislyak actually put Belarus ahead after 33 minutes, but an own goal from Aleksandr Martynovich allowed the home crowd to breathe a sigh of relief.

A few minutes later, Markus Berg found his way between two defenders and put the ball past keeper Chesnovski for a 2-1 lead. The FC Groningen forward went on to add a third just before half time.

The Swedes got another two goals late on, as Berg completed his hat-trick on 81 minutes followed by a fifth and final goal from Gustav Svensson with a distance strike in minute 89.

Consequently, Sweden are the first leaders in Group A, ahead of Tuesday’s other match between Italy and Serbia.