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Jan Jansson (footballer)

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Jan Jansson
Personal information
Full name Jan Jansson[1]
Date of birth (1968-01-26) 26 January 1968 (age 56)
Place of birth Mörbylånga, Öland, Sweden
Height 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)
Position(s) Midfielder
Youth career
Mörbylånga GoIF
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1985–1987 Kalmar 34 (3)
1988–1992 Östers 127 (42)
1993–1997 Norrköping 82 (11)
1996–1997 → Port Vale (loan) 11 (1)
1997–1999 Port Vale 40 (5)
1999–2001 Norrköping 15 (0)
Total 309 (62)
International career
1990–1992 Sweden 7 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Jan Jansson (born 26 January 1968) is a former Sweden international footballer who scored 60 goals in 310 league appearances in a 16-year career in Sweden and England.

He began his senior career with Kalmar, helping them to a second-place finish in the Allsvenskan in 1985. Kalmar suffered a decline, and three years later he signed with Östers, and helped the club to the Division 1 Södra title in 1989 and up to second in the Allsvenskan in 1992. He then switched to Norrköping the next year, who themselves finished second in the league. He was loaned out to English club Port Vale in November 1996, before making a £200,000 move the following summer. He helped the "Valiants" to remain in the First Division, before returning to Norrköping in February 1999. He retired in 2001.

Club career

Jansson began his senior career at Kalmar FF, and played 11 games in the Allsvenskan in 1985, as the "Red brothers" finished second, just two points behind champions Malmö. He then featured 17 times in 1986, as the club slipped down the table and ended the season in the relegation zone. They suffered a second successive relegation zone in 1987, and dropped out of Division 1 Södra, despite Jansson scoring three goals in 16 games.

Jansson moved back to the top-flight with Östers, and scored two goals in 20 league games in 1988 as the club was relegated into Division 1. New manager Hans Backe then led Östers to the Division 1 Södra title in 1989, with Jansson scoring 14 goals in 26 appearances. He then scored five goals in 22 games in 1990, as the team secured European football with a fourth-place finish. He then scored 13 goals in 31 appearances in 1991, and also scored a goal against Olympique Lyonnais in the UEFA Cup. He went on to score eight goals in 28 games in 1992, as Östers finished second in the league, seven points behind champions Norrköping.

He moved on to league champions Norrköping, and scored eight goals in 23 games as they finished second in the league in 1993, some five points behind champions Göteborg. He played 19 games without finding the net in 1994, as Norrköping finished in fourth place. He featured 25 times in 1995, as they had to beat GAIS over two legs after finishing in the relegation play-off zone. He scored one goal in six games in 1996, as Norrköping finished in eighth place.

He moved to England with First Division side Port Vale on a three-month loan in November 1996, during the Swedish winter break. He played 11 league games in the 1996–97 season, and scored his first goal in the Football League at Vale Park on 19 January, in a 4–4 draw with Queens Park Rangers. Back with Norrköping, he scored two goals in nine games in the 1997 season. Port Vale manager John Rudge signed him permanently during the summer of 1997 for a £200,000 fee. He scored five goals in 32 league and two League Cup appearances in the 1997–98 season, the last two of which helped to secure a 4–0 win over Huddersfield Town at the Alfred McAlpine Stadium on the final day of the season – the victory kept the "Valiants" out of the relegation zone.[2] Jansson said that "That’s the first time in my career that I haven’t been able to sleep before a game. In Sweden you play almost for fun, but here this is my work and it was important we stayed up."[2] However, he featured just eight times in the 1998–99 season before being released by new manager Brian Horton in February.

Jansson returned to Sweden and to former club Norrkoping to make four appearances in 1999. He then played five games in 2000 and six games in 2001, before retiring from Nya Parken.

International career

Jansson won seven caps for Sweden and participated in UEFA Euro 1992 and the Joe Robbie Cup.

Style of play

Jansson was a cultured midfielder and a dead ball specialist.[3]

Statistics

Club statistics

Club Season Division League FA Cup Other Total
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Kalmar[4] 1985 Allsvenskan 1 0
1986 Allsvenskan 17 0
1987 Swedish football Division 1 16 3
Total 34 3
Östers[4] 1988 Allsvenskan 20 2
1989 Swedish football Division 1 26 14
1990 Allsvenskan 22 5
1991 Allsvenskan 31 13
1992 Allsvenskan 28 8
Total 127 42
Norrköping[4] 1993 Allsvenskan 23 8
1994 Allsvenskan 19 0
1995 Allsvenskan 25 0
1996 Allsvenskan 6 1
1997 Allsvenskan 9 2
Total 82 11
Port Vale[5] 1996–97 First Division 11 1 1 0 0 0 12 1
1997–98 First Division 33 5 0 0 2 0 35 5
1998–99 First Division 7 0 0 0 1 0 8 0
Total 51 6 1 0 3 0 55 6
Norrköping[4] 1999 Allsvenskan 4 0
2000 Allsvenskan 5 0
2001 Allsvenskan 6 0
Total 15 0
Total 309 62 1 0 3 0 313 62

International statistics

Sweden national team[4]
Year Apps Goals
1991 1 0
1992 4 0
1993 1 0
1994 1 0
Total 7 0

Honours

Kalmar
Östers
Norrköping

References

  1. ^ "Jan Jansson". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Retrieved 9 March 2017.
  2. ^ a b Baggaley, Michael (3 May 2020). "Last day drama when Port Vale stayed up but Man City and Stoke City went down". Stoke Sentinel. Retrieved 4 May 2020.
  3. ^ "Cult Hero 22: Jan Jansson". onevalefan.co.uk. 30 January 2012. Retrieved 1 June 2020.
  4. ^ a b c d e "Player profile". National-Football-Teams.com. Retrieved 10 July 2016.
  5. ^ Jan Jansson at the English National Football Archive (subscription required)
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