Jesper Blomqvist

Premier League

Manchester United purchased Blomqvist as a backup to Ryan Giggs in the early stages of the 1998–99 season, for a fee of £4.4 million, three years after manager Alex Ferguson had first attempted to sign him for United from IFK Gothenburg. He featured in enough games to win a Premier League winner's medal in the 1999 season, scoring his only goal for the club in a 4–1 away win against Everton. He received an FA Cup winners medal despite being an unused substitute in the final. He did, however, start against Bayern Munich in the Champions League final. He came close to scoring before eventually being replaced by Teddy Sheringham, who later scored a late equaliser after Bayern's early goal. United went on to win the match 2–1.

Due to a serious knee injury suffered soon after the Champions League final, Blomqvist did not play football in the next two seasons, which resulted in Manchester United deciding not to renew his contract (during his time out, due to this injury, he did media work for MUTV, United's in-house television channel, and presented his own cookery show called "Cooking With Jesper"). He remained on a week-to-week deal at Old Trafford before finally leaving when Ferguson persuaded Everton manager Walter Smith to offer the Swedish international a short-term contract at Goodison Park, from November 2001 until the end of the season. Blomqvist played on the wings opposite compatriot Niclas Alexandersson, and scored his first goal for Everton against Sunderland in January 2002. Injury problems persisted, however, and new manager David Moyes allowed him to leave the club in June 2002. He had a trial at Middlesbrough, but was unhappy with the club's handling of the situation, labelling it "a bit unprofessional". Instead he signed for Alan Curbishley's Charlton Athletic on a free transfer. His spell at The Valley was even briefer, and he made just three league appearances for the South London side before calling time on an injury-hit five seasons in England.

Return to Sweden Again struggling with injury, Blomqvist returned to his native Sweden after only four games with Charlton. He signed on a short-term deal with Djurgården. This proved unpopular among supporters of IFK Göteborg, who labelled him "Judas". Göteborg fans considered the decision to join Djurgården instead of them a betrayal. Blomqvist played a part as the side became Swedish champions that year. Injury problems, however, restricted him to only nine league appearances. As during the stint with Manchester United, he remained at the club for another two seasons, before finally deciding to retire due to injury in 2005. On 15 September 2008, he scored his first professional goal in five years in a 1–0 win against IK Sirius. In total, he made ten Superettan appearances, but was unable to save Enköping from relegation to Division 1 for the 2009 season. He left Enköping after the season and later signed a contract with newly relegated Hammarby as assistant manager to Michael Borgqvist.

In 2010, Blomqvist played again, coming on as a substitute in the 85th minute for Hammarby against Trelleborg in the Swedish Cup, being one of very few coaches actually playing a game for their team. After a rough period at the club, he left Hammarby in a mutual consent in November 2010.

In 2012, Blomqvist effectively retired as a footballer by focusing on his civilian career. He did this by initiating studies in commerce.

International career Blomqvist was part of the bronze medal-winning Sweden national team at the 1994 FIFA World Cup. He gained his first international cap against Colombia in 1994. His only World Cup match in the starting eleven came against Cameroon, although he also replaced Henrik Larsson in the second half of a draw against eventual champions Brazil. Each member of the squad was awarded a Svenska Dagbladet Gold Medal in recognition of their third place in the tournament. Blomqvist was also considered for the 2002 FIFA World Cup squad. In total, Blomqvist has made 30 appearances for his country, without scoring.

Personal life Blomqvist was born and raised in Tavelsjö, in the Umeå Municipality of Sweden. He currently resides in Sweden, although he has also purchased property in Croatia.

After officially retiring in 2005, Blomqvist became a pundit for Swedish television station TV4. He was the victim of an assault during a visit to his hometown Umeå in September 2006, when he was struck twice across the face. His attacker was prosecuted for the incident.

Blomqvist and his ex-wife Pauline have a son born in 2012. They had divorced in 2016 but remain friends and share custody of their son.

Career statistics

Club

International

Honours Umeå Division 2 Norra Norrland: 1992

IFK Göteborg Allsvenskan: 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996

Manchester United Premier League: 1998–99 FA Cup: 1998–99 UEFA Champions League: 1998–99

Djurgården Allsvenskan: 2003

Sweden FIFA World Cup third place: 1994

Individual Årets komet: 1994 Swedish Goal of the Year: 1995 Folkets lirare: 1996 Swedish Midfielder of the Year: 1996