Spelaren är nära att göra mål igen.

Because Swedish usually puts the definite article at the end of the noun.

• spelare = player / a player
• spelaren = the player

So -en here is the definite ending. A learner can think of spelaren as the player packed into one word.

This is a very common Swedish pattern:

vara nära att + infinitive

It means to be close to doing something or to be on the verge of doing something.

In this sentence:

• är = is (present tense of vara, to be)
• nära = close / near
• att göra = to do / to make

So the structure is not word-for-word English, but the whole pattern is standard Swedish.

Because after nära in this construction, Swedish normally uses the infinitive marker att.

So:

• nära att göra mål = close to scoring
• not nära göra mål

For an English speaker, the important thing is to learn nära att + verb as a set pattern.

Göra mål is a fixed sports expression meaning to score or to score a goal.

Literally, the words are:

• göra = do / make
• mål = goal

But you should treat göra mål as an idiom. In sports Swedish, this is the normal way to say someone scores.

Because göra mål is the usual idiomatic expression.

• göra mål = score / score goals / score a goal, depending on context
• göra ett mål = score one goal, with more emphasis on the number one

So göra mål is the more natural general phrasing here. Swedish often leaves the noun bare in common expressions like this.

In this sentence, it is not being marked clearly as either singular or plural, because it appears in the fixed expression göra mål.

Also, mål is one of those Swedish nouns whose singular and plural look the same:

• ett mål = a goal
• flera mål = several goals

So context usually tells you whether one goal or more is meant.

Because that is the most natural position here.

Swedish adverbs like igen often come late in the clause, and in this sentence the neutral word order is:

Spelaren är nära att göra mål igen.

Putting igen somewhere else is possible in some contexts, but it can sound more marked, formal, or less natural. For everyday Swedish, the end position is the safest choice.

Sometimes, but igen is much more natural here.

• igen = the normal everyday word for again
• åter = often more formal, literary, or used in certain fixed expressions

So in this sentence, igen is the best choice.

Here nära works as a predicative adjective after är.

So the core is:

• Spelaren är nära = The player is close

Then Swedish adds the infinitive phrase:

• att göra mål igen

So the whole idea is The player is close to scoring again.

For a negative statement, Swedish puts inte after the finite verb:

• Spelaren är inte nära att göra mål igen.
• The player is not close to scoring again.

For a yes/no question, Swedish puts the finite verb first:

• Är spelaren nära att göra mål igen?
• Is the player close to scoring again?

This is a very useful pattern to notice:

• statement: Spelaren är ...
• question: Är spelaren ...