BULGARIA'S national football team plays Sweden on Saturday March 26 in what may prove to be the deciding game of the World Cup 2006 qualifying campaign.
The Scandinavians are top of group 8 with nine points, Bulgaria is two points behind, but has a game in hand. Croatia, the other major favourite, also has seven points from three matches, and should have no problems at home, facing Iceland.
Sweden is one of Bulgaria's toughest opponents. The Bulgarians have not won against the Swedes for 38 years.
Both teams were in the same group at the European Champion-ship in Portugal last summer. Sweden had full control of both teams' opening game and crushed Bulgaria 5:0.
Now the Bulgarians are still undefeated under new coach Hristo Stoichkov, and have renovated their squad with a number of young talented players.
Sweden's only worry is the long-term injury to striker Henrik Larsson, who scored two of the goals in the game against Bulgaria in Portugal.
All tickets for the game at "Vassil Levski" stadium were sold out in less than two days. Their prices on the black market have more than doubled the nominal value. Still, many fans without a ticket were ready to sacrifice a large amount of money in order to be able to support Bulgaria.
"I cannot guarantee that we would win, but I am sure my players will give their best to achieve victory. Sweden has a good record against us, but this should not be a factor for the forthcoming game. Every new match is different, everything else is history. We have a new team and I trust my players, they will not let me down. We really have some problems with injured and suspended players, but the people replacing them should prove they deserve to play for Bulgaria. I am glad we will play in a sold out stadium. The support of the fans makes me feel confident for the game," said Stoichkov.
"I am not afraid of the Bulgarians, but I respect them. This game is very important, but it is not decisive, there is still much time until the end of the qualification phase. Recently, we have a good record against Bulgaria, but this does not mean much to me. This is a completely different match and it does not make much sense digging back into history. I do not want to make predictions, but I hope we will win," said Sweden's coach Lars Lagerback.