Johnny Ekström

Johnny Douglas Ekström (born 5 March 1965) is a Swedish former professional footballer who played as a forward and a winger. He played professionally in Italy, Germany, France, and Spain but is best remembered for his time in Sweden with IFK Göteborg with which he was the 1986 Allsvenskan top scorer and won three Swedish Championships. A full international between 1986 and 1995, he won 47 caps for the Sweden national team and represented his country at the 1990 FIFA World Cup and UEFA Euro 1992.

Johnny Ekström
Personal information
Full name Johnny Douglas Ekström
Date of birth (1965-03-05) 5 March 1965
Place of birth Kallebäck, Sweden
Height 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in)
Position(s) Striker, winger
Youth career
–1983 IFK Göteborg
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1983–1986 IFK Göteborg 42 (18)
1986–1988 Empoli 53 (8)
1988–1989 Bayern Munich 23 (7)
1989–1991 Cannes 32 (4)
1991–1993 IFK Göteborg 22 (8)
1993–1994 Reggiana 9 (1)
1994 → Real Betis (loan) 7 (2)
1994–1995 Dynamo Dresden 30 (7)
1995–1997 Eintracht Frankfurt 34 (7)
1997–1998 IFK Göteborg 19 (3)
Total 289 (78)
International career
1984–1986 Sweden U21 12 (2)
1986–1995 Sweden 47 (13)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Club career

IFK Göteborg

A product of the IFK Göteborg youth academy, Ekström was promoted to the first team in 1983 before making his Allsvenskan debut during the 1984 season.[1] He quickly earned the nicknames "Kallebäcks-Expressen" (the express train from Kallebäck) and "Johnny Bråttom" (Johnny-in-a-hurry) due to his speed on the football pitch.[2] His most successful season with Göteborg came in 1986, when he was the 1986 Allsvenskan top scorer and helped the club reach the semi-finals of the 1985–86 European Cup before being eliminated by FC Barcelona.[1] He also played in the first half of the 1986–87 UEFA Cup which IFK Göteborg ended up winning after Ekström's departure.[1]

Empoli

Ekström was the most expensive Swedish transfer of all time when he signed for Empoli during the 1986–87 Serie A season.[3] At Empoli, he became a popular and respected player and acquired the nickname 'Il Ciclone' (the cyclone) due to the exceptional speed he displayed when charging ahead with the ball in his possession, which was his most notable quality.[2]

Bayern Munich

In 1988 Ekström signed for the German Bundesliga club FC Bayern Munich, and helped them win the 1988–89 Bundesliga title and reach the semi-finals of the 1988–89 UEFA Cup before being eliminated by Napoli.[3]

Cannes

He signed with AS Cannes in Ligue 1 in 1989 and played alongside a young Zinedine Zidane before leaving the club in 1991.[3]

Return to IFK Göteborg

Ekström returned to Swedish football and IFK Göteborg in 1991, winning the 1991 and 1993 Swedish Championships, as well as the 1991 Svenska Cupen.[3] He also played in the 1992–93 UEFA Champions League where Göteborg finished joint-third behind Marseille and A.C. Milan.[4]

Reggiana

Ekström returned to Serie A and Italian football in 1993, signing for Reggiana.[3] Ekström played in 9 Serie A games for Reggiana during the 1993–94 Serie A season before spending the rest of the season on loan in Spain.[5]

Loan to Real Betis

Ekström spent the spring of 1994 with Real Betis on loan from Reggiana, becoming the second Swedish player to represent the Seville-based club after Torbjörn Jonsson.[6] He played in seven Segunda División games during the 1993–94 season and scored two goals.[6]

Dynamo Dresden

During the summer of 1994, Ekström returned to German football and the Bundesliga after signing a two-year-contract with Dynamo Dresden.[7] He ended up playing one season for the club, scoring seven goals in 30 Bundesliga games.[5]

Eintracht Frankfurt

Ekström signed for Eintracht Frankfurt in 1995, and scored two goals in 16 games as the club was relegated to 2. Bundesliga in 1996.[5] He stayed with the club in 2. Bundesliga, but could not help the team win promotion back to the top flight of German football.[8]

Second return to IFK Göteborg and retirement

He returned to IFK Göteborg a second time in 1997, and spent the 1997 and 1998 Allsvenskan seasons with the club before retiring from professional football in late 1998.[3] In total, Ekström appeared in more than 200 games for IFK Göteborg during his three stints with the club.[1]

International career

Youth

Ekström played 12 games for the Sweden U21 team and was a part of the Sweden U21 squad that reached the quarterfinals of the 1986 UEFA European Under-21 Championship before being eliminated by Italy.[9]

Senior

Ekström made his full international debut in a friendly game against Greece on 1 May 1986, playing for 71 minutes alongside Dan Corneliusson at forward before being replaced by Lasse Larsson in a 0–0 draw.[10] He scored his first international goal in a 3–1 friendly win against Finland on 6 August 1986.[9]

UEFA Euro 1988 qualifying

Ekström made his competitive international debut for Sweden on 24 September 1986 in a UEFA Euro 1988 qualifying game against Switzerland, which Sweden won 2–0 after two goals by Ekström.[9] He went on to score another four goals in the same qualifying campaign, making him the joint-third best goalscorer in the UEFA Euro 1988 qualifiers at six goals together with Alessandra Altobelli but behind John Bosman and Nico Claesen.[11] Despite Ekström's goals, Sweden did not manage to qualify for Euro 1988.[12]

1990 FIFA World Cup

Ekström scored two goals during the 1990 FIFA World Cup qualifying campaign to help Sweden qualify for its first World Cup since 1978.[9] While at the 1990 World Cup, he appeared in the second group stage game against Scotland, replacing Stefan Pettersson in the 63rd minute in a 1–2 loss.[13] He started in the third group stage game against Costa Rica, scoring the first goal in a third consecutive 1–2 loss which had Sweden eliminated from the tournament.[14]

UEFA Euro 1992

Ekström was a part of the Sweden squad at UEFA Euro 1992 on home soil in Sweden and appeared as a substitute in all four games as Sweden reached the semi-finals of the tournament before being eliminated by Germany.[9]

Later years and retirement

Ekström played in four 1994 FIFA World Cup qualifying games before announcing his retirement from international football in October 1993.[15][3] He made a brief comeback on 8 March 1995 in a friendly 3–3 draw with Cyprus in which Ekström scored one of the goals.[9] He won a total of 47 caps for the Sweden national team, scoring 13 goals.[9]

Career statistics

International
Appearances and goals by national team and year[9]
National team Year Apps Goals
Sweden 1986 8 6
1987 8 2
1988 5 1
1989 7 1
1990 6 1
1991 0 0
1992 9 0
1993 3 1
1994 0 0
1995 1 1
Total 47 13
Scores and results list Sweden's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Ekström goal.
List of international goals scored by Johnny Ekström
No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition Ref.
1 6 August 1986 Helsinki Olympic Stadium, Helsinki, Finland  Finland 2–0 3–1 Friendly [16]
2 10 September 1986 Råsunda Stadium, Solna, Sweden  England 1–0 1–0 Friendly [17]
3 24 September 1986 Råsunda Stadium, Solna, Sweden   Switzerland 1–0 2–0 UEFA Euro 1988 qualifier [18]
4 2–0
5 16 November 1986 Ta´Qali Stadion, Ta´Qali, Malta  Malta 4–0 5–0 UEFA Euro 1988 qualifier [19]
6 5–0
7 24 May 1987 Ullevi, Gothenburg, Sweden  Malta 1–0 1–0 UEFA Euro 1988 qualifier [20]
8 17 June 1987 Stade Olympique, Lausanne, Switzerland   Switzerland 1–1 1–1 UEFA Euro 1988 qualifier [21]
9 5 November 1988 Qemal Stafa Stadium, Tirana, Albania  Albania 2–1 2–1 1990 FIFA World Cup qualifier [22]
10 25 October 1989 Silesian Stadium, Chorzów, Poland  Poland 2–0 2–0 1990 FIFA World Cup qualifier [23]
11 20 June 1990 Stadio Luigi Ferraris, Genoa, Italy  Costa Rica 1–0 1–2 1990 FIFA World Cup [24]
12 15 April 1993 Nepstadion, Budapest, Hungary  Hungary 1–0 2–0 Friendly [25]
13 8 March 1995 Tsirion Athletic Centre, Limassol, Cyprus  Cyprus 2–1 3–3 Friendly [26]

Honours

IFK Göteborg

Bayern München

Individual

References
  1. "Johnny Ekström - ifkdb.se". ifkdb.se. Retrieved 4 January 2021.
  2. "Johnny Ekströms nya position som fastighetsskötare – Fastighetsfolket" (in Swedish). Retrieved 6 January 2021.
  3. Balkander, Mattias (2 February 2020). "Barcelona ville skriva ett åttaårskontrakt". Göteborgs-Posten (in Swedish). Retrieved 5 January 2021.
  4. UEFA.com. "UEFA Champions League - Matches". UEFA. Retrieved 11 January 2021.
  5. "Johnny Ekström". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 11 January 2021.
  6. "Ekstrom y el inédito Jonsson, precedentes de suecos en el Betis". sevilla (in Spanish). 16 January 2013. Retrieved 11 January 2021.
  7. "Ekström klar för Dresden". Dagens Nyheter (in Swedish). 22 June 1994. Retrieved 11 January 2021.
  8. "2. Bundesliga 1996/1997 - 34. Spieltag". weltfussball.de (in German). Retrieved 11 January 2021.
  9. "Johnny Ekström - Spelarstatistik - Svensk fotboll". svenskfotboll.se. (in Swedish). Retrieved 4 January 2021.
  10. "Sverige - Grekland - Matchfakta - Svensk fotboll". svenskfotboll.sehttps (in Swedish). Retrieved 5 January 2021.
  11. "European Championship 1988". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. Retrieved 5 January 2021.
  12. Hansson, Sofie. "Vem vinner Fotbolls-EM 2021". Fotbolls-EM 2021 i Europa (in Swedish). Retrieved 5 January 2021.
  13. "Sverige - Skottland - Matchfakta - Svensk fotboll". svenskfotboll.sehttps (in Swedish). Retrieved 5 January 2021.
  14. "Sverige - Costa Rica - Matchfakta - Svensk fotboll". svenskfotboll.sehttps (in Swedish). Retrieved 5 January 2021.
  15. "Ekström nobbar VM". Dagens Nyheter (in Swedish). 22 October 1993. Retrieved 5 January 2021.
  16. "Finland - Sverige - Matchfakta - Svensk fotboll". svenskfotboll.se (in Swedish). Retrieved 4 January 2021.
  17. "Sverige - England - Matchfakta - Svensk fotboll". svenskfotboll.se (in Swedish). Retrieved 4 January 2021.
  18. "Sverige - Schweiz - Matchfakta - Svensk fotboll". svenskfotboll.se (in Swedish). Retrieved 4 January 2021.
  19. "Malta - Sverige - Matchfakta - Svensk fotboll". svenskfotboll.se (in Swedish). Retrieved 4 January 2021.
  20. "Sverige - Malta - Matchfakta - Svensk fotboll". svenskfotboll.se (in Swedish). Retrieved 4 January 2021.
  21. "Schweiz - Sverige - Matchfakta - Svensk fotboll". svenskfotboll.se (in Swedish). Retrieved 4 January 2021.
  22. "Albanien - Sverige - Matchfakta - Svensk fotboll". svenskfotboll.se (in Swedish). Retrieved 4 January 2021.
  23. "Polen - Sverige - Matchfakta - Svensk fotboll". svenskfotboll.se (in Swedish). Retrieved 4 January 2021.
  24. "Sverige - Costa Rica - Matchfakta - Svensk fotboll". svenskfotboll.se (in Swedish). Retrieved 4 January 2021.
  25. "Ungern - Sverige - Matchfakta - Svensk fotboll". svenskfotboll.se (in Swedish). Retrieved 4 January 2021.
  26. "Cypern - Sverige - Matchfakta - Svensk fotboll". svenskfotboll.se (in Swedish). Retrieved 4 January 2021.
  27. "Stora Grabbars Märke - Svensk fotboll". www.svenskfotboll.se (in Swedish). Retrieved 24 February 2021.
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