Robin Olsen was accused by Sweden’s coach Jon Dahl Tomasson of disappointing the national team by leaving international competition after learning he was no longer the squad’s first choice goalkeeper.
The 35-year-old Olsen made the announcement on Tuesday that he was quitting his international career, one day after Tomasson called to inform him that he would not be starting in a next World Cup qualifying match against Switzerland.
It followed a major error by Olsen that conceded a goal for Slovenia in Sweden’s 2-2 World Cup qualification draw in Ljubljana last month. Olsen made his 79th appearance for Sweden four days later, starting the 2-0 defeat to Kosovo.
In an interview with the Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet that was released on Wednesday, Olsen, who left Aston Villa during the summer to play for Malmö, stated that he had long believed that Tomasson didn’t want him in the team and that he was “a leader that I didn’t want to work under.” He made it clear that as long as Tomasson is coach, his decision to leave Sweden will remain in effect.
Tomasson accuses Robin Olsen of letting down the team
During a press conference, Tomasson responded to questions regarding Olsen’s remarks by saying he was “disappointed” by the response.
“Instead of standing with his teammates, he let them down by being publicly critical and open,” Tomasson added. It is disheartening. “You’re not good enough,” you’re telling your teammates.
“You are telling your hardworking teammates that I am more valuable than they are.” I don’t believe that doing things this way is appropriate.
Because “there is no free ride” in elite soccer, Tomasson said he thought it was crucial to personally call Olsen “out of respect” to let him know he was no longer the team’s first choice and that the decision was made based on “performance.”
In a statement released by the federation on Tuesday, Olsen, who spent ten years playing for Sweden, said that it was a “great honor to represent my country and I have always felt great support from our supporters.”
Olsen “meant a huge amount” to the Sweden squad, and his decision to retire was deemed “sad” by national team manager Stefan Pettersson.
