Trouble for Frankfurt’s Larsson in Sweden selection

Sweden started the Nations League with two clear victories – but Eintracht Frankfurt’s Hugo Larsson was still more than dissatisfied and was withdrawn before the second match. The 20-year-old was visibly disappointed that national coach Jon Dahl Tomasson did not include him in the opening match against Azerbaijan after his good start to the season in the Bundesliga.

The coach publicly asked him to play more forward. Before the second game against Estonia, the midfielder left the Swedish team early – according to the association, due to injury. “Of course I was disappointed and expected something different after the start I had in Germany,” Larsson told Swedish reporters.

The association later explained the withdrawal before the Estonia match with a minor injury. Dahl Tomasson said that Larsson had felt something, spoke to the medical staff and decided himself that he could not play against Estonia.

Larsson moved from Swedish record champions Malmö FF to Eintracht in the summer of 2023 and is considered one of the country’s biggest talents in his home country. However, his big breakthrough in the national team is still pending. He is said to have a strained relationship with Dahl Tomasson. However, after the victory against Estonia, the coach assured that he had no problem with the young professional. He described him as “a very good player” and “a young talent with a lot of potential”.

The controversy did not affect the Swedes’ success: first they won 3-1 in Azerbaijan, then 3-0 at home in Stockholm against Estonia. The two strikers Alexander Isak (Newcastle United) and Viktor Gyökeres (Sporting Lisbon) each scored three goals. Team captain Dejan Kulusevski (Tottenham Hotspur) told radio station SVT afterwards: “We are here to play football and we don’t want any drama or anything.”