Simon Hedlund

Simon Fredrik Hedlund (Swedish pronunciation: [ˈhêːdlɵnd]; born 11 March 1993) is a Swedish professional footballer who plays as a forward for Allsvenskan club Elfsborg.

Simon Hedlund
Hedlund in 2021
Personal information
Full name Simon Fredrik Hedlund[1]
Date of birth (1993-03-11) 11 March 1993
Place of birth Trollhättan, Sweden[1]
Height 1.73 m (5 ft 8 in)[2]
Position(s) Winger
Team information
Current team
 Elfsborg
Youth career
IFK Trollhättan
0000–2009 FC Trollhättan
2009–2012 Elfsborg
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2012–2016 Elfsborg 93 (14)
2016–2019 Union Berlin 70 (8)
2019–2023 Brøndby 133 (23)
2023– Elfsborg 3 (0)
International career‡
2008–2010 Sweden U17 18 (1)
2010–2012 Sweden U19 9 (0)
2013 Sweden U21 2 (0)
2020 Sweden 2 (1)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 11:41, 2 October 2023 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 00:44, 17 January 2022 (UTC)

Hedlund joined IF Elfsborg at the age of 16 and debuted in the Allsvenskan in 2012. In 2016, he moved to Union Berlin for a club record €850,000 before signing for Brøndby IF for €250,000 two and a half years later, in January 2019.[3] In Denmark, he developed a strong partnership in attack with first top goalscorer Kamil Wilczek and since Mikael Uhre and became noted for his pace and pressing abilities. He returned to Elfsborg in 2023, after seven years abroad.

Hedlund has represented Sweden at different youth levels and made his under-21 debut in 2012. He was called up to the senior team in 2020, and scored his first goal for the national team in his second appearance.[4]

Club career

Elfsborg

Born in Trollhättan, Västra Götaland County, Hedlund joined the youth system of IF Elfsborg when he was 16 years old, after having played for hometown clubs IFK Trollhättan and FC Trollhättan. There, he made his professional debut on 12 August 2012 in a 4–1 league win over Malmö FF, coming on as a late substitute for Niklas Hult.[5] At the end of the season, Elfsborg won the Swedish league title. He was also a part of the Elfsborg team that won the Swedish Cup in 2014.[6] On 31 July 2014, Hedlund made his first goal in European competition, scoring on a penalty kick in the 89th minute in a 4–1 win over Icelandic club FH in the third qualifying round of the Europa League.[7]

During his time in Elfsborg, Hedlund made 93 league appearances in which he scored 14 goals. He also scored nine goals in 20 appearances in the Swedish Cup and made 17 total appearances in the Champions League and UEFA Europa League.

Union Berlin

On 29 August 2016, Hedlund signed a four-year contract with 2. Bundesliga club, 1. FC Union Berlin.[8] The transfer made him the most expensive purchase by the club at the time.[9] Hedlund made his debut on 21 September, as a substitute in an away game against Würzburger Kickers which Union won 1–0.[10] He finished the 2016–17 season with 29 appearances in which he scored three goals.[2]

Hedlund missed just three league matches during the 2017–18 season as Union finished eighth in the league.[2] However, the following season he saw less playing time, as Union would eventually push for promotion to the Bundesliga just months after he left the club.[11] Hedlund departed the Stadion An der Alten Försterei in January 2019, after making 75 appearances and scoring 11 goals for the club.[2]

Brøndby

On 11 January 2019, Hedlund moved to Denmark to join Superliga club Brøndby IF on a four-and-a-half year contract for a fee rumoured to be around €250,000.[3] He was assigned shirt number 27 by the club.[12] Hedlund scored his first goal for the club in a 2–2 home draw against OB on 29 March.[13] He made the final of the Danish Cup in his first six months in Brøndby, a match against FC Midtjylland which was eventually lost on penalties.[14] Hedlund finished the 2018–19 season with four goals from 19 appearances. On 30 June 2020, Hedlund and teammate Samuel Mráz tested positive for COVID-19, ruling them out for at least a week.[15]

Before a match against FC Midtjylland on 24 October 2020, Hedlund was not selected for the matchday squad, giving rise to speculation to about the reasons. Brøndby head coach Niels Frederiksen explained that other players had impressed more during practice, and that the decision of not including Hedlund was "not a disciplinary punishment".[16] He would, however, finish the season strong as a key part of the Brøndby offense alongside top goalscorer Mikael Uhre and Jesper Lindstrøm as the club won its first Danish Superliga in 16 years.[17][18] Hedlund contributed with nine goals and nine assists in 33 appearances in the club's title-winning season, and was voted Superliga Player of the Month for May 2021 for his performances.[2][17]

On 3 March 2023, Hedlund extended his contract with Brøndby by two years until 2025.[19]

Return to Elfsborg

On 20 August 2023, Hedlund returned to Elfsborg, signing a three-and-a-half-year contract with Di Gule.[20][21] He made his return debut for the club on 3 September, replacing André Boman at half-time in a 1–0 league loss away against IFK Värnamo.[22]

International career

Hedlund has represented Sweden as an international at various youth levels. On 9 January 2020, Hedlund made his debut for the Sweden national team in a friendly against Moldova, a match that ended in a 1–0 win for Sweden.[23] In his second match, a 1–0 win over Kosovo on 12 January, Hedlund scored his first international goal, which secured the win for Sweden.[24]

Style of play

Hedlund has been described as a player with an "aggressive and direct playing style", who can play in multiple offensive positions.[25] Renowned for his pace with and without the ball at his feet, Hedlund has described himself as a "hard worker",[26] and was praised for evolving into a true team-player during his time at Brøndby by head coach Niels Frederiksen.[27]

Personal life

Hedlund is of Finnish descent through his Finnish mother.[28] In June 2020, Hedlund married longtime girlfriend, Sandra Isabel, in Sweden.[29]

Career statistics

Club
As of match played 25 September 2023[2]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club League Season League National cup[lower-alpha 1] Europe Other Total
AppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Elfsborg 2012 Allsvenskan 70001[lower-alpha 2]0—80
2013 Allsvenskan 162426[lower-alpha 3]0—264
2014 Allsvenskan 271724[lower-alpha 2]11[lower-alpha 4]0394
2015 Allsvenskan 266546[lower-alpha 2]0—3511
2016 Allsvenskan 1754100—286
Total 93142091711013525
Union Berlin 2016–17 2. Bundesliga 28310——293
2017–18 2. Bundesliga 31521——336
2018–19 2. Bundesliga 11022——132
Total 7085300007511
Brøndby 2018–19 Superliga 16430—00194
2019–20 Superliga 315206[lower-alpha 2]1—396
2020–21 Superliga 31821——339
2021–22 Superliga 294208[lower-alpha 5]0—384
2022–23 Superliga 252004[lower-alpha 6]2—294
2023–24 Superliga 1000——10
Total 13323911830016027
Elfsborg 2023 Allsvenskan 3000——30
Career total 2994534133541036963
  1. Includes Svenska Cupen, DFB-Pokal, Danish Cup
  2. Appearances in UEFA Europa League
  3. Two appearances in UEFA Champions League, four appearances in UEFA Europa League
  4. Appearance in the Swedish Super Cup
  5. Two appearances in UEFA Champions League, six appearances in UEFA Europa League
  6. Appearances in UEFA Europa Conference League

International
As of 15 February 2020
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National teamYearAppsGoals
Sweden 202021
Total21
As of matches played 12 January 2020[2]
Scores and results list Sweden's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Hedlund goal.
List of international goals scored by Simon Hedlund
No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
112 January 2020Hamad bin Khalifa Stadium, Doha, Qatar Kosovo1–01–0Friendly

Honours

Elfsborg

Brøndby

Individual

References
  1. "Simon Hedlund". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 17 July 2018.
  2. "S. Hedlund: Summary". Soccerway. Retrieved 21 September 2020.
  3. "Brøndby henter svensk es: Koster det samme som Wilczek". Ekstra Bladet. 11 January 2019. Retrieved 13 January 2019.
  4. "Simon Hedlund". Svenskfotboll. Retrieved 13 August 2012.
  5. "Elfsborg kopplade guldgrepp mot MFF". svenskafans.com. 13 August 2012. Retrieved 3 April 2019.
  6. "Elfsborg Cupmastare 2014". svenskfotboll.se. Retrieved 3 April 2019.
  7. "Elfsborg-FH 2015 History". UEFA. Retrieved 27 February 2020.
  8. "Lämnar Elfsborg – för spel i Tyskland". Aftonbladet. 29 August 2016. Retrieved 3 April 2019.
  9. "Union om Hedlund: Krævede skifte nu". bold.dk. 11 January 2019. Retrieved 12 January 2019.
  10. "Spielinfo - Würzburger Kickers - 1. FC Union Berlin 0:1". kicker.de. 21 September 2016. Retrieved 15 February 2020.
  11. "Union Berlin reach Bundesliga for first time as Stuttgart relegated". theguardian.com. 28 May 2019. Retrieved 15 February 2020.
  12. "Brøndby IF skriver kontrakt med Simon Hedlund". Brøndby IF. Retrieved 12 January 2019.
  13. "Underholdende bronzeduel i Brøndby ender 2–2" (in Danish). Retrieved 15 February 2020.
  14. "FCM vinder pokalfinale i straffedrama mod Brøndby - se alle målene og straffesparkskonkurrencen her" (in Danish). Retrieved 15 February 2020.
  15. Wehlast, Mads Glenn (30 June 2020). "To Brøndby-spillere har corona". ekstrabladet.dk. Ekstra Bladet. Retrieved 30 June 2020.
  16. Risager, Victor (26 October 2020). "BIF-træner om vraget Simon Hedlund: Andre har vist sig bedre frem". Tipsbladet (in Danish). Retrieved 28 October 2020.
  17. Karlsen, Nanna Møller (29 May 2021). "Simon Hedlund er månedens spiller i Superligaen | 3point.dk". 3point.dk (in Danish).
  18. "Soccer-Brondby beat Nordsjaelland to clinch Danish league title". Reuters. 24 May 2021. Archived from the original on 22 May 2022. Retrieved 22 May 2022.
  19. "Brøndby IF og Simon Hedlund forlænger parløbet". Brøndby IF (in Danish). 3 March 2023. Archived from the original on 4 March 2023. Retrieved 4 March 2023.
  20. "Välkommen hem – Simon Hedlund". IF Elfsborg (Press release) (in Swedish). 20 August 2023. Archived from the original on 20 August 2023. Retrieved 20 August 2023.
  21. Julin, Max (20 August 2023). "Officiellt: Elfsborg presenterar nyförvärv - Simon Hedlund återvänder". fotbollskanalen (in Swedish). Retrieved 20 August 2023.
  22. Wulcan, Marcus (2 September 2023). "Rött efter hjärnsläpp: "Helt vansinnigt gjort"". Expressen (in Swedish). Archived from the original on 23 September 2023. Retrieved 2 October 2023.
  23. "Simon Hedlund skal på landsholdsvæggen". 3point.dk. 10 January 2020. Retrieved 10 January 2020.
  24. "Hedlund hjälte när Sverige vann igen". expressen.se. 12 January 2020. Retrieved 12 January 2020.
  25. "4 dage til 3F Superliga". 3F Superliga (in Danish). 20 May 2020.
  26. "Simon Hedlund: Ikke i tvivl om Brøndby IF - Brøndby IF". brondby.com (in Danish). 11 January 2019.
  27. Okstrøm, Oliver (24 May 2021). "Hylder Hedlund: Fra stor egoist til holdspiller". Tipsbladet.dk (in Danish).
  28. Väänänen, Ville (6 April 2018). "Entinen nuorisotähti pettyi Ruotsin A-maajoukkuevalintoihin – harkitsee vaihtamista Suomen riveihin". Ilta-Sanomat (in Finnish). Retrieved 10 December 2019. ... äiti ja äidinpuolen isovanhemmat ovat suomalaisia.
  29. Jensen, Anders (12 June 2020). "Hedlund: Jeg skider på hvad andre tænker". bold.dk. Retrieved 30 June 2020.
  30. "Fansene har talt: Månedens spiller for februar er Simon Hedlund". brondby.com (in Danish). 2 March 2019.
  31. "Fansene har talt: Månedens spiller for marts er Simon Hedlund". brondby.com (in Danish). 2 April 2019.
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