View source for Niclas Alexandersson

{{Short description|Swedish footballer}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2021}}
{{Infobox football biography
| name = Niclas Alexandersson
| image = Niclas Alexandersson 2006.jpg
| caption = Alexandersson with [[Sweden men's national football team|Sweden]] at the [[2006 FIFA World Cup]] in Germany
| full_name = Jens Niclas Alexandersson
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1971|12|29|df=y}}
| birth_place = [[Halmstad]], Sweden
| height = 1.81 m
| position = [[Winger (association football)|Right winger]]
| youthyears1 = 
| youthclubs1 = Vessigebro BK
| years1 = 1989–1995
| clubs1 = [[Halmstads BK|Halmstad]]
| caps1 = 157
| goals1 = 29
| years2 = 1996–1997
| clubs2 = [[IFK Göteborg]]
| caps2 = 52
| goals2 = 13
| years3 = 1997–2000
| clubs3 = [[Sheffield Wednesday F.C.|Sheffield Wednesday]]
| caps3 = 75
| goals3 = 8
| years4 = 2000–2004
| clubs4 = [[Everton F.C.|Everton]]
| caps4 = 58
| goals4 = 4
| years5 = 2003–2004
| clubs5 = → [[West Ham United F.C.|West Ham United]] (loan)
| caps5 = 8
| goals5 = 0
| years6 = 2004–2008
| clubs6 = [[IFK Göteborg]]
| caps6 = 119
| goals6 = 18
| years7 = 2009
| clubs7 = [[IFK Göteborg]]
| caps7 = 5
| goals7 = 1
| years8 = 2017
| clubs8 = [[Västra Frölunda IF|Västra Frölunda]]
| caps8 = 1
| goals8 = 0
| totalcaps = 475
| totalgoals = 73
| nationalyears1 = 1988
| nationalteam1 = [[Sweden men's national under-17 football team|Sweden U16]]
| nationalcaps1 = 8
| nationalgoals1 = 1
| nationalyears2 = 1988–1991
| nationalteam2 = [[Sweden men's national under-19 football team|Sweden U18]]
| nationalcaps2 = 28
| nationalgoals2 = 1
| nationalyears3 = 1991–1993
| nationalteam3 = [[Sweden national under-21 football team|Sweden U21]]/[[Sweden Olympic football team|O]]
| nationalcaps3 = 27
| nationalgoals3 = 1
| nationalyears4 = 1996–1997
| nationalteam4 = [[Sweden national football B team|Sweden B]]
| nationalcaps4 = 2
| nationalgoals4 = 0
| nationalyears5 = 1993–2008
| nationalteam5 = [[Sweden men's national football team|Sweden]]
| nationalcaps5 = 109
| nationalgoals5 = 7
}}
'''Jens Niclas Alexandersson''' ({{IPA|sv|ˈnɪk.las ˌalɛkˈsan.dɛʂˌsɔn}}; born 29 December 1971) is a Swedish former professional [[Association football|footballer]] who played as a [[winger (association football)|right winger]] and [[right back]].

Beginning his career with [[Halmstads BK|Halmstad]] in 1989, he went on to represent [[IFK Göteborg]], [[Sheffield Wednesday F.C.|Sheffield Wednesday]], [[Everton F.C.|Everton]], and [[West Ham United F.C.|West Ham United]] before retiring in 2009.

A full international between 1993 and 2008, he won [[List of men's footballers with 100 or more international caps|109 caps]] for the [[Sweden men's national football team|Sweden national team]] and represented his country at two [[FIFA World Cup]]s ([[2002 FIFA World Cup|2002]] and [[2006 FIFA World Cup|2006]]) and two [[UEFA European Championship]]s ([[UEFA Euro 2000|2000]] and [[UEFA Euro 2008|2008]]).

==Club career==
After starting his career with local club Vessigebro, Alexandersson moved to [[Halmstads BK|Halmstad]] in 1988. He played for the team until 1995, when he joined [[IFK Göteborg]], with whom he won [[Allsvenskan]] in [[1996 Allsvenskan|1996]] and played in the [[UEFA Champions League]]. After one year in [[Gothenburg]], he moved on to England, where he was signed for £750,000 by [[Ron Atkinson]] for [[Sheffield Wednesday F.C.|Sheffield Wednesday]].<ref name="sheffieldwednesday.rivals.net">{{cite web |url=http://sheffieldwednesday.rivals.net/default.asp?sid=894&p=2&stid=7961461 |title=Archived copy |access-date=23 March 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070302210745/http://sheffieldwednesday.rivals.net/default.asp?sid=894 |archive-date=2 March 2007 }}</ref> He played for three seasons in Sheffield, where he became a fans favourite and won the Player of The Season award the year the team was relegated from the [[Premier League]].<ref name="sheffieldwednesday.rivals.net"/> After relegation, he was signed by [[Everton F.C.|Everton]] for £2.5 million where he played for from 2000 to 2003, until he moved back to Gothenburg, where he played from 2004 to 2008.

After an initial retirement in 2008, Alexandersson worked at IFK Göteborg's youth academy, Änglagårdskolan. On 27 September 2009, newspapers reported that he was to make a comeback, and would start training again on 29 September 2009.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.sr.se/sida/artikel.aspx?programid=2835&artikel=3129628|title = Sveriges Radio - lokala och rikstäckande radiokanaler|newspaper = Sveriges Radio|date = 28 September 2009}}</ref> On 2 October 2009, it was revealed that Alexandersson would sign a contract for the rest of the season.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.fotbollskanalen.se/allsvenskan/ifk-har-skrivit-kontrakt-med-alexandersson---han-spelar-pa-mandag/|title=IFK har skrivit kontrakt med Alexandersson - ”Han spelar på måndag”|website=fotbollskanalen}}</ref> After the season, he retired for good.

In 2017, Alexandersson made a brief comeback when appearing in a [[Division 3 (Swedish football)|Division 3 Sydvästra Götaland]] game for [[Västra Frölunda IF|Västra Frölunda]] against [[Kungsbacka IF|Kungsbacka]], appearing as a substitute in the 78th minute and playing alongside his son [[Noah Alexandersson]] in a 6–0 win.<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite web|title=Niclas Alexandersson - Lagstatistik|url=https://www.lagstatistik.se/player?playerId=52462|access-date=8 July 2021|website=www.lagstatistik.se|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Serier och resultat|url=https://www.azaleabk.se/Varalag/P04/Serierochresultat/?scr=result&fmid=3505011|access-date=8 July 2021|website=www.azaleabk.se|language=sv}}</ref>

==International career==
Alexandersson made his debut for the [[Sweden men's national football team|Sweden national team]] in 1993, and participated in 109 international games, scoring seven goals. His participation in the national team includes the [[2002 FIFA World Cup]], [[2006 FIFA World Cup]], [[2000 UEFA European Football Championship|Euro 2000]] and [[2008 UEFA European Football Championship|Euro 2008]]. He was also a member of the Swedish squad that competed at the [[1992 Summer Olympics]] in Barcelona. One of his goals came in Sweden's 1–1 draw against England, which he shot powerfully from outside the box and passed through [[David Seaman]] during the group stages of the 2002 World Cup.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/niclas-alexandersson-reveals-biggest-everton-25651053|title=Niclas Alexandersson reveals his biggest Everton regret and talks scoring against England|first=Chris|last=Beesley|date=4 December 2022|website=Liverpool Echo}}</ref>

The day after Sweden's exit from [[Euro 2008]], he decided that he would retire from the national team alongside [[Marcus Allbäck]], however he also said that if it was needed, due to injuries, he would play for the national team again.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://svt.se/svttext/web/pages/303.html |title=The first blue and yellow to retire |date=19 June 2008 |access-date=19 June 2008 |publisher=SVT.se |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080616123014/http://www.svt.se/svttext/web/pages/303.html |archive-date=16 June 2008 }}</ref>

==Personal life==
Alexandersson was born in [[Halmstad]] on 29 December 1971 to father [[Lennart Alexandersson]], a former Halmstad player. He grew up in [[Falkenberg]], where he started playing football in the local club [[Vessigebro BK|Vessigebro]]. In 1978, his brother [[Daniel Alexandersson]], who was also a professional football player, was born. In 1988, he moved to Halmstad to play for Halmstads BK. He attended Falkenbergsgymnasieskola 1987-1990.

Alexandersson married his wife Frida. The couple had first child Tilda in 1999 and son named [[Noah Alexandersson|Noah]] in 2001.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.aftonbladet.se/sportbladet/fotbollsbladet/article78995.ab |title=Svenska spelarfruarna längtar efter sina gubbar &#124; Fotboll &#124; Sportbladet &#124; Aftonbladet |access-date=28 May 2009 |archive-date=12 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160312132812/http://www.aftonbladet.se/sportbladet/fotboll/article10285359.ab |url-status=dead }}</ref> While playing football, Alexandersson's family has lived in numerous places including [[Sheffield, England|Sheffield]], Liverpool, Warrington, and London before returning to [[Gothenborg]]. His son Noah Alexandersson has gone on to play professional football for IFK Göteborg in Allsvenskan.<ref>{{Cite web|title=20 frågor till Noah Alexandersson: "Vissa driver med mig – men de är bara avundsjuka"|url=https://www.expressen.se/gt/sport/fotboll/allsvenskan/vissa-driver-med-mig-de-ar-bara-avundsjuka/|access-date=5 March 2021|website=www.expressen.se|date=18 May 2020 |language=sv}}</ref>

== Career statistics ==
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|+ Appearances and goals by national team and year<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|title=Niclas Alexandersson - Spelarstatistik - Svensk fotboll|url=https://www.svenskfotboll.se/spelarfakta/niclas-alexandersson/dd4e5b14-f5cc-4560-a1af-260aaf78f052/|access-date=8 July 2021|website=www.svenskfotboll.se|language=sv}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|title=Niclas Alexandersson – Century of International Appearances|publisher=[[Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation]]|url=https://www.rsssf.org/miscellaneous/alexandersson-intl.html}}</ref>
|-
!National team!!Year!!Apps!!Goals
|-
|rowspan="16"|[[Sweden men's national football team|Sweden]]
|1993
|1
|0
|-
|1994
|2
|0
|-
|1995
|8
|2
|-
|1996
|6
|0
|-
|1997
|12
|0
|-
|1998
|0
|0
|-
|1999
|10
|3
|-
|2000
|8
|0
|-
|2001
|8
|1
|-
|2002
|12
|1
|-
|2003
|1
|0
|-
|2004
|4
|0
|-
|2005
|11
|0
|-
|2006
|13
|0
|-
|2007
|7
|0
|-
|2008
|6
|0
|-
!colspan="2"|Total
!109
!7
|}

:''Scores and results list Sweden's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Alexandersson goal.''

{| class="wikitable sortable"
|+ List of international goals scored by Niclas Alexandersson
|-
!scope="col"|No.
!scope="col"|Date
!scope="col"|Venue
!scope="col"|Opponent
!scope="col"|Score
!scope="col"|Result
!scope="col"|Competition
|-
|style="text-align:center"|1
|8 March 1995
|[[Tsirion Athletic Centre]], [[Limassol]], Cyprus
|{{fb|Cyprus}}
|style="text-align:center"|3–2
|style="text-align:center"|3–3
|[[Friendly (association football)|Friendly]]
|-
|style="text-align:center"|2
|15 November 1995
|[[Råsunda Stadium]], [[Solna Municipality|Solna]], Sweden
|{{fb|Turkey}}
|style="text-align:center"|1–0
|style="text-align:center"|2–2
|[[UEFA Euro 1996 qualifying|UEFA Euro 1996 qualifier]]
|-
|style="text-align:center"|3
|10 February 1999
|[[Stade El Menzah|Stade Olympique El-Mensah]], [[Tunis]], Tunisia
|{{fb|Tunisia}}
|style="text-align:center"|1–0
|style="text-align:center"|1–0
|Friendly
|-
|style="text-align:center"|4
|4 September 1999
|Råsunda Stadium, Solna, Sweden
|{{fb|Bulgaria}}
|style="text-align:center"|1–0
|style="text-align:center"|1–0
|[[UEFA Euro 2000 qualifying|UEFA Euro 2000 qualifier]]
|-
|style="text-align:center"|5
|8 September 1999
|[[Stade Josy Barthel|Josy Barthel Stadion]], [[Luxembourg City]], Luxembourg
|{{fb|Luxembourg}}
|style="text-align:center"|1–0
|style="text-align:center"|1–0
|UEFA Euro 2000 qualifier
|-
|style="text-align:center"|6
|6 June 2001
|[[Ullevi]], [[Gothenburg]], Sweden
|{{fb|Moldova}}
|style="text-align:center"|4–0
|style="text-align:center"|6–0
|[[2002 FIFA World Cup qualification (UEFA)|2002 FIFA World Cup qualifier]]
|-
|style="text-align:center"|7
|2 June 2002
|[[Saitama Stadium 2002|Saitama Stadium]], [[Saitama (city)|Saitama]], Japan
|{{fb|England}}
|style="text-align:center"|1–1
|style="text-align:center"|1–1
|[[2002 FIFA World Cup]]
|}

== Honours ==
'''IFK Göteborg'''<ref>{{Cite web|title=Niclas Alexandersson - ifkdb.se|url=http://ifkdb.se/spelare/Niclas-Alexandersson_9|access-date=9 July 2021|website=ifkdb.se}}</ref>

* [[Allsvenskan]]: [[1996 Allsvenskan|1996]], [[2007 Allsvenskan|2007]]
* [[Svenska Cupen]]: [[2008 Svenska Cupen|2008]]
* [[Supercupen|Svenska Supercupen]]: [[2008 Svenska Supercupen|2008]]
'''Individual'''
* [[Swedish Midfielder of the Year]]: 1995<ref>{{Cite web|title=Niclas är en av de stora i svensk fotboll - Halmstads BK|url=https://www.hbk.se/nyheter/2020/maj/niclas-ar-en-av-de-stora-i-svensk-fotboll|access-date=9 July 2021|website=www.hbk.se}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Fotbollsgalan - här är ALLA vinnare sedan 1995|url=https://www.fotbollskanalen.se/allsvenskan/fotbollsgalan---har-ar-alla-vinnare-sedan-1995/|access-date=9 July 2021|website=fotbollskanalen|language=sv}}</ref>
* [[Sheffield Wednesday F.C. Player of the Year|Sheffield Wednesday Player of the Year]]: [[1999–2000 Sheffield Wednesday F.C. season|1999–2000]]<ref>{{Cite web|title=Sheffield Wed Player of the Year 1969-2021|url=https://www.myfootballfacts.com/premier-league/premier-league-clubs-2/sheffield-wednesday-player-of-the-year/|access-date=9 July 2021|website=My Football Facts|language=en-US}}</ref>
* [[Årets Ärkeängel]]: 2004<ref>{{Cite web|title=Alla 47 ärkeänglar {{!}} ifkdb.se|url=https://ifkdb.se/listor/arkeanglar|website=ifkdb.se|access-date=2020-05-06}}</ref>

==See also==
* [[List of men's footballers with 100 or more international caps]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
*{{Soccerbase}}
* {{ifkdb|name=#10 Niclas Alexandersson}}
{{Sheffield Wednesday F.C. Player of the Year}}
{{Navboxes
|title=Sweden squads
|bg= #FFF01C
|fg= #005B99
|bordercolor= #005B99
|list1=
{{Sweden Squad 1992 Summer Olympics}}
{{Sweden UEFA Euro 2000 squad}}
{{Sweden Squad 2002 World Cup}}
{{Sweden Squad 2006 World Cup}}
{{Sweden Squad 2008 Euro}}
}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Alexandersson, Niclas}}
[[Category:1971 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Footballers from Halmstad]]
[[Category:Swedish men's footballers]]
[[Category:Men's association football midfielders]]
[[Category:Sweden men's international footballers]]
[[Category:Sweden men's youth international footballers]]
[[Category:Olympic footballers for Sweden]]
[[Category:Footballers at the 1992 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:UEFA Euro 2000 players]]
[[Category:2002 FIFA World Cup players]]
[[Category:2006 FIFA World Cup players]]
[[Category:UEFA Euro 2008 players]]
[[Category:FIFA Men's Century Club]]
[[Category:Allsvenskan players]]
[[Category:Premier League players]]
[[Category:English Football League players]]
[[Category:Halmstads BK players]]
[[Category:IFK Göteborg players]]
[[Category:Sheffield Wednesday F.C. players]]
[[Category:Everton F.C. players]]
[[Category:West Ham United F.C. players]]
[[Category:Swedish expatriate men's footballers]]
[[Category:Swedish expatriate sportspeople in England]]
[[Category:Expatriate men's footballers in England]]