Written by Brian Koh
Zlatan Ibrahimovic
The easiest pick is right here. It is impossible to discuss about Sweden without bringing this name up. Ibrahimovic has been and will be the single largest contributor to the current Swedish team. Without him, there is no way Sweden would have made it to the final stage.
This 34 year old Swedish player disregards people criticizing him as being too old. His confidence level is now as high as it can be and his stats from PSG this season supports his confidence. He has scored more than 45 goals for PSG this season and that is still counting. Also, Zlatan scored total 11 goals in the 10 qualifying matches of Sweden. However, regardless of all the performances he is showing to the world, the fact that he is aging is true. Considering his age, this year will likely to be his very last chance to play in EURO.
Oscar Hiljemark
Oscar Hiljemark is a hustler style box-to-box midfielder who plays for Palermo. He is a player who does everything from imposing pressure to scoring goals. In fact, he can play both defensive and attacking center midfielder.
Out of surprise, Swede won the 2015 U21 European Championship. Oscar Hiljemark, the captain of the team at the time was the hot potato. With that attention Hiljemark was sold to Palermo from PSV Eindhoven. During his time in PSV, this young player failed to make a good impression. However, he was quick to adjust to Serie A and has made a good impact since his transfer. He is certainly carrying the number 10 role pretty well in Palermo. ESPN selected Hiljemark as one of the “Five young players to watch” in this year’s EURO playoffs.
How to cite this page: “Sweden: Key Players”, Written by Brian Koh(2016). European Cup 2016 Guide, Soccer Politics Blog, Duke University, http://sites.duke.edu/wcwp/tournament-guides/european-cup-2016-guide/underrated-teams-of-euro-2016/sweden/sweden-key-players/ (accessed on (date)).
