Magnus Hedman
Encyclopedia
Magnus Carl Hedman is a Swedish
former football goalkeeper. He played 58 matches for the Sweden national football team
, and represented his country at two FIFA World Cup
and two European Championship
tournaments.
He is recently divorced from Magdalena Graaf
, a Swedish author, former model and pop singer. The couple have two sons together.
in 1990. He won the 1992 Allsvenskan
championship with AIK, and was chosen as a backup for first-choice keeper Thomas Ravelli
at the 1994 World Cup
. He debuted for the Swedish national team in February 1997, and moved abroad to play for English
club Coventry City
in July that year. Hedman was chosen for the Swedish squad at the Euro 2000
where he played all Sweden's matches and conceded goals from Bart Goor
and Emile Mpenza
against Belgium and from Luigi Di Biagio
and Alessandro Del Piero
against Italy (both lost 2-1). The other match, against Turkey, was 0-0 draw. He won the 2000 Guldbollen
award. He also played full time for Sweden at the 2002 World Cup
.
Hedman was replaced by future England international Chris Kirkland
in the Coventry City
team during their relegation from the FA Premier League
in the 2000/01 season. He regained his place following Kirkland's transfer to Liverpool
after a single game of the 2001/02 season. His Coventry City
career came to an acrimonious conclusion towards the end of that season, when he was approached on the pitch during an away match against Preston North End on 6 April 2002 by a 'fan' who was questioning his commitment to the club and desire to play in the Football League Championship
.
Hedman played two further games for Coventry that season before moving on to Celtic
in the Scottish Premier League
in 2002. He had a loan spell
at Italian team A.C. Ancona
in 2004, a time in which he later claimed to have witnessed bribery on part of his Ancona teammates. While at Ancona, he was chosen to represent Sweden at the Euro 2004, where he served as a back-up for keeper Andreas Isaksson
. He played a further season for Celtic, before being released at the start of the 2005/06 season. He then retired from professional football.
In September 2006, he was rumoured to be making a sensational comeback at English FA Premier League
club Newcastle United
. According to himself he denied an offer from the club, citing it was too short of a contract to be interesting. The club itself has denied ever contacting the goalkeeper. On 9 November 2006 it was announced that Hedman would join FA Premier League
Champions Chelsea
on a week's trial, due to Chelsea's current lack of fully fit goalkeepers except for Henrique Hilário
and youth team keeper Yves Makalambay. The move was eventually completed on 14 November 2006, taking the No. 22 shirt previously worn by Eidur Gudjohnsen
. Hedman has since been released from his contract, having made no official appearances for Chelsea.
In November 2008 he claimed he was approached by Manchester City to provide back up following the injury to their current number 1 Joe Hart
. Hedman began training with Premier League club Tottenham Hotspur on 5 January 2009, with a view to gaining a contract with Spurs until at least the end of the 2008–09 season, of which he did not achieve. According to BBC Sport, Hedman has begun working with the backroom staff of Weymouth F.C, with a view to training goalkeepers at the club.
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
former football goalkeeper. He played 58 matches for the Sweden national football team
Sweden national football team
The Swedish national football team represents Sweden in association football and is controlled by the Swedish Football Association, the governing body for Football in Sweden. Sweden's home ground is Råsunda Stadium in Stockholms län and their head coach is Erik Hamrén. Sweden made their first...
, and represented his country at two FIFA World Cup
FIFA World Cup
The FIFA World Cup, often simply the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of Fédération Internationale de Football Association , the sport's global governing body...
and two European Championship
UEFA European Football Championship
The UEFA European Football Championship is the main football competition of the men's national football teams governed by UEFA . Held every four years since 1960, in the even-numbered year between World Cup tournaments, it was originally called the UEFA European Nations Cup, changing to the current...
tournaments.
He is recently divorced from Magdalena Graaf
Magdalena Graaf
Engla Maria Magdalena Graaf is a Swedish model, singer, and author. In 1998, she and her sister Hannah Graaf joined together and formed the group The Graaf Sisters, who became popular with the song "You Got What I Want Baby"...
, a Swedish author, former model and pop singer. The couple have two sons together.
Biography
Hedman started his career with AIKAIK Fotboll
AIK, , an abbreviation for Allmänna Idrottsklubben, , when needed internationally AIK Stockholm, is a Swedish football club based at Råsunda stadium in Solna, a municipality in Stockholm County bordering to Stockholm City Centre...
in 1990. He won the 1992 Allsvenskan
Allsvenskan
Allsvenskan is a Swedish professional league for association football clubs. At the top of the Swedish football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. Contested by 16 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with Superettan...
championship with AIK, and was chosen as a backup for first-choice keeper Thomas Ravelli
Thomas Ravelli
Thomas Ravelli is a retired Swedish footballer who played as a goalkeeper.His 21-year professional career was almost exclusively associated with Öster and Göteborg, for whom he amassed Allsvenskan totals of 430 games....
at the 1994 World Cup
1994 FIFA World Cup
The 1994 FIFA World Cup, the 15th staging of the FIFA World Cup, was held in nine cities across the United States from June 17 to July 17, 1994. The United States was chosen as the host by FIFA on July 4, 1988...
. He debuted for the Swedish national team in February 1997, and moved abroad to play for English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
club Coventry City
Coventry City F.C.
Coventry City Football Club, otherwise known as the Sky Blues owing to the traditional colour of their strip, are a professional English Football league club based in Coventry...
in July that year. Hedman was chosen for the Swedish squad at the Euro 2000
2000 UEFA European Football Championship
The 2000 UEFA European Football Championship, or Euro 2000, was the 11th UEFA European Football Championship, which is held every four years and organized by UEFA, association football's governing body in Europe....
where he played all Sweden's matches and conceded goals from Bart Goor
Bart Goor
Bart Goor is a Belgian football left winger currently playing for Westerlo.-Geel:Goor began his professional career representing K.F.C. Verbroedering Geel in 1991 having risen through the club's youth ranks...
and Emile Mpenza
Émile Mpenza
Eka Basunga Lokonda "Émile" Mpenza is a Belgian footballer who plays for Neftchi Baku as a striker. He has been capped at international level by Belgium. His older brother, Mbo, was also a footballer who represented Belgium....
against Belgium and from Luigi Di Biagio
Luigi Di Biagio
Luigi Di Biagio , is an Italian former football defensive midfielder, who last played for Ascoli Calcio 1898 .Di Biagio was born in Rome. Prior to joining Ascoli, he played for Lazio , Monza , Foggia , Roma , Internazionale , and Brescia Calcio . He was capped 31 times for Italy, scoring two goals...
and Alessandro Del Piero
Alessandro Del Piero
Alessandro Del Piero Ufficiale OMRI is an Italian World Cup-winning footballer who plays for Serie A club Juventus, of which he is also club captain....
against Italy (both lost 2-1). The other match, against Turkey, was 0-0 draw. He won the 2000 Guldbollen
Guldbollen
Guldbollen, , is a Swedish football award given by the Aftonbladet and the Swedish Football Association to the best male Swedish footballer each year....
award. He also played full time for Sweden at the 2002 World Cup
2002 FIFA World Cup
The 2002 FIFA World Cup was the 17th staging of the FIFA World Cup, held in South Korea and Japan from 31 May to 30 June. It was also the first World Cup held in Asia, and the last in which the golden goal rule was implemented. Brazil won the tournament for a record fifth time, beating Germany 2–0...
.
Hedman was replaced by future England international Chris Kirkland
Chris Kirkland
Christopher Edmund "Chris" Kirkland is an English footballer who currently plays as a goalkeeper for Wigan Athletic in the Premier League. He also has one cap for the England national team....
in the Coventry City
Coventry City F.C.
Coventry City Football Club, otherwise known as the Sky Blues owing to the traditional colour of their strip, are a professional English Football league club based in Coventry...
team during their relegation from the FA Premier League
FA Premier League
The Premier League is an English professional league for association football clubs. At the top of the English football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with The Football League. The Premier...
in the 2000/01 season. He regained his place following Kirkland's transfer to Liverpool
Liverpool F.C.
Liverpool Football Club is an English Premier League football club based in Liverpool, Merseyside. Liverpool has won eighteen League titles, second most in English football, seven FA Cups and a record seven League Cups...
after a single game of the 2001/02 season. His Coventry City
Coventry City F.C.
Coventry City Football Club, otherwise known as the Sky Blues owing to the traditional colour of their strip, are a professional English Football league club based in Coventry...
career came to an acrimonious conclusion towards the end of that season, when he was approached on the pitch during an away match against Preston North End on 6 April 2002 by a 'fan' who was questioning his commitment to the club and desire to play in the Football League Championship
Football League Championship
The Football League Championship is the highest division of The Football League and second-highest division overall in the English football league system after the Premier League...
.
Hedman played two further games for Coventry that season before moving on to Celtic
Celtic F.C.
Celtic Football Club is a Scottish football club based in the Parkhead area of Glasgow, which currently plays in the Scottish Premier League. The club was established in 1887, and played its first game in 1888. Celtic have won the Scottish League Championship on 42 occasions, most recently in the...
in the Scottish Premier League
Scottish Premier League
The Scottish Premier League , also known as the SPL , is a professional league competition for association football clubs in Scotland...
in 2002. He had a loan spell
Loan (football)
In sports, a loan involves a particular player being allowed to temporarily play for a club other than the one he is currently contracted to. Loan deals may last from a few weeks to all season-long....
at Italian team A.C. Ancona
A.C. Ancona
Associazione Calcio Ancona was a professional Italian football club, based in Ancona, Marche. It was founded in 1905 as Unione Sportiva Anconitana, changing its name to Ancona Calcio 1905 in 1981 and being refounded in 2004 with its last denomination....
in 2004, a time in which he later claimed to have witnessed bribery on part of his Ancona teammates. While at Ancona, he was chosen to represent Sweden at the Euro 2004, where he served as a back-up for keeper Andreas Isaksson
Andreas Isaksson
Andreas Isaksson is a Swedish footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Dutch club PSV Eindhoven and for the Swedish national team.-Club career:...
. He played a further season for Celtic, before being released at the start of the 2005/06 season. He then retired from professional football.
In September 2006, he was rumoured to be making a sensational comeback at English FA Premier League
FA Premier League
The Premier League is an English professional league for association football clubs. At the top of the English football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with The Football League. The Premier...
club Newcastle United
Newcastle United F.C.
Newcastle United Football Club is an English professional association football club based in Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear. The club was founded in 1892 by the merger of Newcastle East End and Newcastle West End, and has played at its current home ground, St James' Park, since the merger...
. According to himself he denied an offer from the club, citing it was too short of a contract to be interesting. The club itself has denied ever contacting the goalkeeper. On 9 November 2006 it was announced that Hedman would join FA Premier League
FA Premier League
The Premier League is an English professional league for association football clubs. At the top of the English football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with The Football League. The Premier...
Champions Chelsea
Chelsea F.C.
Chelsea Football Club are an English football club based in West London. Founded in 1905, they play in the Premier League and have spent most of their history in the top tier of English football. Chelsea have been English champions four times, FA Cup winners six times and League Cup winners four...
on a week's trial, due to Chelsea's current lack of fully fit goalkeepers except for Henrique Hilário
Henrique Hilário
Henrique Hilário Meireles Alves Sampaio , known as Hilário, is a Portuguese footballer who plays for Chelsea in the Premier League as a goalkeeper.-Portugal:...
and youth team keeper Yves Makalambay. The move was eventually completed on 14 November 2006, taking the No. 22 shirt previously worn by Eidur Gudjohnsen
Eiður Guðjohnsen
Eiður Smári Guðjohnsen is an Icelandic footballer who currently plays for AEK Athens F.C. in the Superleague Greece. He has previously played for Premier League club Chelsea and FC Barcelona of Spain, having made his name with Bolton Wanderers. He was the captain of the Iceland national team until...
. Hedman has since been released from his contract, having made no official appearances for Chelsea.
In November 2008 he claimed he was approached by Manchester City to provide back up following the injury to their current number 1 Joe Hart
Joe Hart
Charles Joseph John "Joe" Hart is an English football goalkeeper who plays for Premier League club Manchester City and the England national football team and was previously a regular for the England under-21 team....
. Hedman began training with Premier League club Tottenham Hotspur on 5 January 2009, with a view to gaining a contract with Spurs until at least the end of the 2008–09 season, of which he did not achieve. According to BBC Sport, Hedman has begun working with the backroom staff of Weymouth F.C, with a view to training goalkeepers at the club.