Sweden squad
Goalkeepers
Andreas ISAKSSON
03.10.81
Manchester City (Eng)
54 caps (0 goals)
First-choice keeper despite having lost his place at Man City after a spell out through injury. Moved to Juventus aged 17 but did not play. Revived his career back in Sweden with Djurgardens.
Rami SHAABAN
30.06.75
Hammarby
15 caps (0 goals)
Former Arsenal reserve who provides back-up to Isaksson. Born in Stockholm to an Egyptian father and Finnish mother. A Muslim, he recites the Koran before games.
Johan WILAND
24.01.81
Elfsborg
3 caps (0 goals)
Likely third-choice keeper who made his debut in January last year against Ecuador on a tour of South America.
Defenders
Matias CONCHA
31.03.80
Bochum (Ger)
8 caps (0 goals)
Likely reserve right-back who has been in and out of the squad since making his debut in 2006. Moved to Germany from Djurgardens last year. Born in Malmo but his family are originally from Chile.
Andreas GRANQVIST
16.04.85
Helsingborg
4 caps (0 goals)
One of Sweden’s promising young defenders. Played for Wigan Athletic in the Premier League this season but opted to return to Swedish club Helsingborg on loan in March.
Petter HANSSON
14.12.76
Rennes (Fra)
31 caps (1 goal)
Powerful central defender who earned the nickname White Tornado from the Dutch press when he played for Heerenveen. Can also play in midfield but has a tendency to be caught out.
Daniel MAJSTOROVIC
05.04.77
Basle (Swi)
14 caps (1 goal)
Commanding central defender who is a threat at set-pieces and also takes penalties. Of Serbian descent and reportedly speaks seven languages. Tipped to leave Basle this summer.
Olof MELLBERG
03.09.77
Aston Villa (Eng)
80 caps (4 goals)
Strong, confident central defender and still a key figure despite stepping down as captain after the 2006 World Cup. Can also play at right-back. Will join Juventus on a free transfer after Euro 2008.
Mikael NILSSON
24.06.78
Panathinaikos (Gre)
45 caps (3 goals)
Solid full-back who was a member of the Euro 2004 and 2006 World Cup squads. Scored twice on his debut, against the Czech Republic in 2002. Had a season at Southampton.
Fredrik STOOR
28.02.84
Rosenborg (Nor)
3 caps (0 goals)
Right-back who was in the starting line-up for Sweden’s most recent game. Has played in Norway since December 2006. Started out at Hammarby.
Midfielders
Niclas ALEXANDERSSON
29.12.71
IFK Gothenburg
106 caps (7 goals)
Has continued to defy the ageing process since returning to Sweden in 2004 from a long spell in England with Sheffield Wednesday and Everton. Plays alongside brother Daniel at Gothenburg.
Daniel ANDERSSON
28.08.77
Malmo
61 caps (0 goals)
Experienced midfielder back at first club Malmo after a lengthy spell in Italy. Offers good distribution. Younger brother of
ex-Sweden captain Patrik and son of former international Roy.
Kim KALLSTROM
24.08.82
Lyon (Fra)
54 caps (8 goals)
Playmaker with great passing ability and a fierce shot who is well established in the French League. Joined Rennes from Djurgardens in 2003 and has been at Lyon since 2006.
Sebastian LARSSON
06.06.85
Birmingham (Eng)
2 caps (0 goals)
Confident youngster with good technique. Made his debut in February, against Turkey. Can also play at full-back. Joined Birmingham from Arsenal (after a season-long loan) last summer.
Tobias LINDEROTH
21.04.79
Galatasaray
74 caps (2 goals)
Sweden’s holding midfielder is battling to recover from a hip injury. Linderoth joined Galatasaray in 2007 after winning the Danish Superleague twice with FC Copenhagen.
Fredrik LJUNGBERG
16.04.77
West Ham (Eng)
71 caps (14 goals)
A regular for Sweden since 1998 and captain since 2006. His late runs make him one of the team’s biggest scoring threats. Suffered
a cracked rib in April putting a question mark over his fitness.
Anders SVENSSON
17.07.76
Elfsborg
88 caps (15 goals)
Experienced central midfielder who has enjoyed a successful return to club football in Sweden after a long spell in England with Southampton. Free-kick specialist with a powerful shot.
Christian WILHELMSSON
08.12.79
Deportivo La Coruna (Spa)
49 caps (4 goals)
Pacy wide man who is strong going forward but can overlook his defensive duties. A squad regular despite career turbulence – five clubs in the past three seasons.
Forwards
Marcus ALLBACK
05.07.73
FC Copenhagen (Den)
71 caps (30 goals)
Disciplined, physical striker with an impressive scoring record for Sweden. Was the team’s top scorer in the Euro 2008 qualifiers and is an ideal foil for Ibrahimovic.
Johan ELMANDER
27.05.81
Toulouse (Fra)
33 caps (11 goals)
Was a teenage prodigy but failed to live up to the hype at Feyenoord. Revived his career at Brondby, earning a move to Toulouse, where he has excelled. Linked with a move to England this summer.
Zlatan IBRAHIMOVIC
03.10.81
Internazionale (Ita)
49 caps (18 goals)
The star of the show and vital to Sweden’s hopes. Can be a loose cannon but on his day a world-class finisher with superb pace and technique. Has Bosnian roots, grew up in Malmo.
Henrik LARSSON
20.09.71
Helsingborg
94 caps (36 goals)
Comes out of national team retirement for the third time to play his sixth tournament, having started out at the 1994 World Cup. Scored at every level including productive spells at Barcelona, Celtic and Manchester United. Sweden’s top scorer at Euro 2004.
Markus ROSENBERG
27.09.82
Werder Bremen (Ger)
21 caps (6 goals)
Skilful, pacy forward who made his name at Halmstads, where he was Swedish league top scorer. Joined Ajax in 2005, then Werder Bremen in January 2007.
Newsletter
Current Issue
Advertisements
