Sweden midfielder Pontus Wernbloom scored two second-half goals Friday in a 2-0 win over Hungary in qualifying for the 2012 European Championship.
Substitute Sebastian Larsson crossed from the right, and Wernbloom moved across the front of his marker to head in powerfully at the near post in the 51st minute.
Wernbloom's second goal came in the 73rd, tapping in from close range after his own header had hit the crossbar.
Wernbloom was surprisingly picked by coach Erik Hamren to start the match ahead of Kim Kallstrom.
On Tuesday in qualifying, Sweden hosts San Marino and Hungary plays Moldova. Finland and World Cup finalist, the Netherlands, make up Group E.
Hungary sat back for most of the game and tried to hit Sweden on the break, but the home team defended strongly and created numerous opportunities in a performance full of quick movement and incisive passing.
Sweden had the first chance in the 19th, but Ola Toivonen shot straight at goalkeeper Gabor Kiraly after being sent clear by Zlatan Ibrahimovic's clever reverse pass.
Ibrahimovic was the creative force at the heart of Sweden's best moments going forward, but he missed a good first-half chance by scuffing a shot wide after being played in by Emir Bajrami.
The striker missed another chance just before halftime, when he couldn't quite stretch far enough to turn Johan Elmander's inviting cross into the net.
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Lineups:
Sweden: Andreas Isaksson (Johan Wiland, 46), Mikael Lustig, Olof Mellberg, Daniel Majstorovic, Behrang Safari, Anders Svensson (Kim Kallstrom, 33), Pontus Wernbloom, Johan Elmander (Sebastian Larsson, 49), Ola Toivonen, Emir Bajrami, Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
Hungary: Gabor Kiraly, Pal Lazar, Roland Juhasz, Zoltan Liptak, Zsolt Laczko, Krisztian Vadocz, Akos Elek, Vladimir Koman, Zoltan Gera, Balazs Dzsudzsak (Szabolcs Huszti, 46), Gergely Rudolf (Tamas Hajnal, 82).
