Olsson sure Swedes can deliver perfect riposte to trash talk of his Norwich pals
EVER since his Swedish side were pitted against the Republic of Ireland in the Euro 2016 draw last December, Martin Olsson has been given a crash-course in Dublin banter by his Norwich City teammates Robbie Brady and Wes Hoolahan.
Not a week passed without a scud been thrown the way of Sweden’s left-back. Book your flight home after the group stage now because we’ll beat you 3-0, Hoolahan goaded, while Brady chipped in by claiming the threat of Zlatan Ibrahimovic would be thwarted by a couple of crunching Ireland tackles.
In contrast to that haze of noise, the silence from his club colleagues has been deafening as the big occasion tomorrow looms.
Olsson wonders if reality has dawned on the duo about the task at hand to translate those words in action.
‘I’m very close to Robbie but he still hasn’t answered a text message I sent him two weeks ago,’ said the 28-year-old yesterday ahead of his second European Championships.
‘We were both abroad after the season ended for a short break and Robbie’s hotel was close to mine.
‘We met quite a lot then but he has gone silent since.’
That the trail has gone cold is all the more curious to Olsson considering how full of trash-talk Brady and fellow Dubliner Wes Hoolahan were about the game in Paris.
‘Robbie and Wes were doing all the talking while I didn’t say much,’ he explained.
‘I just laughed at some of the stuff they were saying — such as Ireland would win 3-0 and we should book a flight home now for the end of the group on June 22.
‘They were also warning that our captain, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, would be tackled hard by the Irish.
‘Our squad are aware of our dangerous Robbie can be from free-kicks and that Wes can dribble past any player. But Wes is also small and not the strongest.
‘We will see who is able to do the talking back at the club after the tournament because I’m confident our team will get the victory.’
Perhaps in the fallout of Friday’s open training session, Sweden opted to keep the media out of yesterday’s concluding workout at Saint-Nazaire.
Pictures of striker John Guidetti clashing with colleague Albin Ekdal and members of coaching staff made headline news back in Sweden, leading to a change in policy yesterday.
Players and coaching staff were keen to dampen down rumours of any friction in the camp yesterday, instead attributing the incident to a competitive spirit prevalent in the quest to secure starting slots against Ireland.
‘It was only a small-sided game but everyone wanted to win,’ noted striker Marcus Berg. ‘John is no different. These things happen all the time at club level and we move on. Nothing has lingered.’
Erik Hamrén’s side last night departed their base on the westcoast of France for Paris, where they train today at the Stade de France.
Attention continues to focus on Ibrahimovic and, though Hamrén has ruled out any transfer business being concluded in England while his team remain in the Euros, their talisman is expected to finalise his move afterwards to join former boss Jose Mourinho at Manchester United.
Ibrahimovic will sign off on his international career in France and aims to do so with a flourish. Just three goals short of matching Michel Platini’s record haul of nine at the European Championships for Les Bleus, the 34-year-old is arguably in the best form of his career entering the last lap as Sweden’s spearhead.
‘This is a very difficult group but we are ready for the challenge,’ said Ibrahimovic as he returns to the city of the club he is leaving, Paris Saint-Germain.
‘I have played in Italy and know some of their best players. Belgium have been the top-ranked team in the world and possess a lot of good individual players. The only thing they’re missing is winning a big competition, which they are capable of.
‘It will be exciting to play against Ireland too. I know what difficult opponents they are from facing them twice in the 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifiers.
‘They will be tough again, yet we have prepared well and know what is at stake.’