EURO 2016 go head to head on Sunday in a match that will be the final warm-up ahead of the European Championship finals in France and the forthcoming game will put all of the limelight upon the two most prominent stars of each team – Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Gareth Bale.

Ibra’s last hurrah

Sweden captain Zlatan Ibrahimovic is standings at the crossroads of his career. Following a successful spell with Paris Saint-Germain where he broke all of the club’s records and won consecutive domestic titles during all seasons of his stay with the Saints, the Swede is on the move. Manchester United look to be in the front row to sign the experienced striker who is being coy on his future refusing to dwell into it before the Euro 2016. The tournament in France could might as well be Ibra’s last chance of making an impression at the international stage as the 34-year-old striker is not getting any younger. He faces a tough task with his team being pitted in the ‘group of death’ against Italy, Belgium and Ireland. Sunday’s match at Friends Arena is make it or break it time for Sweden who are looking to recover from their patchy form. Having won just one of their last six matches, Sweden will need to go strong against Wales in order to get past the overall disappointing form over the course of last six months.

Ibrahimovic is ready to lead the line for Hamren’s team with six members of the under-21 team that surprisingly became European champions last summer. West Brom’s Jonas Olsson and Borussia Monchengladbach’s Oscar Wendt did not make the cut and are considered the most notable omissions.

Bale’s quest

Gareth Bale returned to Wales squad feeling energized by the Champions League success with Real Madrid. Club champions of Europe will look to extend the good form for his nation as well, despite the fact that Wales have a long way to go if they intend to go beyond the group stage. Pitted against England, Russia and Slovakia, Wales find themselves in potentially tricky group and will need to improve their form if they want to make their time in France count. Wales has waited nearly 60 years to get to the biggest international stage and the Dragons are highly motivated to bounce back from their three losses, two draws and one win in their last six matches in their final preparation game at Sweden. Coleman’s men are ready for the challenge as they insist that Euro 2016 will be bigger than just the England match. Local derby will be a nerve-wrecker but Dragons are trying not to think about it as they focus all of their attention to Sweden and Slovakia at the opening of their Euro 2016 campaign.

Joe Ledley made the cut and got picked for Euro 2016 squad just a month after recovering from a broken leg. On the other side, Emyr Huws, Adam Matthews and Paul Dummet all missed out and will not be around to help against Sweden.

Verdict

Both Sweden and Wales are under a lot of pressure to deliver and pack their bags for Euro on the back of a final friendly win. Two players that are expected to be star performers in France – Ibrahimovic and Bale – go head to head in a duel that is pretty hard to predict considering erratic forms from both sides of late.

Top pick: Both teams to score – yes   2.10 (11/10) @BetFair

Alternative pick 1: Over 2.5 goals   2.35 (27/20) @Coral

Alternative pick 2: Home win   2.10 (11/10) @PaddyPower