Alexander Hans Christian Farnerud (born 1 May 1984) is a Swedish former professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...

who played as

attacking midfielder A midfielder is an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield position in association football. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As #Cent ...

. Starting out at

Landskrona BoIS Landskrona Boll och Idrottsällskap ( en, Landskrona Ball and Sports Society, locally referred to as BoIS) is a Swedish professional football club located in Landskrona, Scania, which currently plays in Superettan, the second league tier of fo ...

in the early 2000s, he went on to represent clubs in France, Germany, Denmark, Switzerland, and Italy before retiring at

FC Chiasso FC Chiasso is a Swiss football club based in Chiasso. It was founded in 1905. Chiasso also played in the Italian first league between 1914 and 1923. The team's most glorious period was between 1948 and 1961, when the team was promoted to the ...

in 2022. A full international between 2003 and 2010, he won eight

caps Caps are flat headgear. Caps or CAPS may also refer to: Science and technology Computing * CESG Assisted Products Service, provided by the U.K. Government Communications Headquarters * Composite Application Platform Suite, by Java Caps, a Java ...

and scored two goals for the Sweden national team.

Club career

Landskrona BoIS

Born in

Landskrona Landskrona (old da, Landskrone) is a town in Scania, Sweden. Located on the shores of the Öresund, it occupies a natural port, which has lent the town at first military and subsequent commercial significance. Ferries operate from Landskrona t ...

, Farnerud made his professional debut with

. He scored in one of his first

Allsvenskan Allsvenskan (; en, the All-Swedish, also known as Fotbollsallsvenskan, en, the Football All-Swedish) is a Swedish professional league for men's association football clubs. It was founded in 1924 and is the top tier of the Swedish football lea ...

matches, a 2–1 home win against reigning champions Hammarby.

Strasbourg

On 15 November 2003, Farnerud was bought by France's

Strasbourg Strasbourg (, , ; german: Straßburg ; gsw, label=Bas Rhin Alsatian, Strossburi , gsw, label=Haut Rhin Alsatian, Strossburig ) is the prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est region of eastern France and the official seat of the Eu ...

, being an automatic first-choice in his two-and-a-half-year spell. In his

first First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1). First or 1st may also refer to: *World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement Arts and media Music * 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and rec ...

and third seasons in

Ligue 1 Ligue 1, officially known as Ligue 1 Uber Eats for sponsorship reasons, is a French professional league for men's association football clubs. At the top of the French football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. A ...

, he played alongside older brother

Pontus Pontus or Pontos may refer to: * Short Latin name for the Pontus Euxinus, the Greek name for the Black Sea (aka the Euxine sea) * Pontus (mythology), a sea god in Greek mythology * Pontus (region), on the southern coast of the Black Sea, in modern ...

who was first loaned by

Monaco Monaco (; ), officially the Principality of Monaco (french: Principauté de Monaco; Ligurian: ; oc, Principat de Mónegue), is a sovereign city-state and microstate on the French Riviera a few kilometres west of the Italian region of Lig ...

, then acquired.

Stuttgart

Upon Strasbourg's 2006 relegation, Farnerud moved to

VfB Stuttgart Verein für Bewegungsspiele Stuttgart 1893 e. V., commonly known as VfB Stuttgart (), is a German sports club based in Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg. The club's football team is currently part of Germany's first division, the Bundesliga. VfB Stu ...

in Germany, on a four-year deal. He was used sporadically over the course of two

Bundesliga The Bundesliga (; ), sometimes referred to as the Fußball-Bundesliga () or 1. Bundesliga (), is a professional association football league in Germany. At the top of the German football league system, the Bundesliga is Germany's primary footba ...

campaigns, appearing nine times for the 2007 champions.

Brøndby IF

On 8 July 2008, Farnerud signed with the

Danish Superliga The Danish Superliga ( da, Superligaen, ) is the current Danish football championship tournament, and administered by the Danish Football Association. It is the highest football league in Denmark and is currently contested by 12 teams each yea ...

club Brøndby.

Young Boys

On 18 January 2011, Farnerud changed clubs and countries again, joining Young Boys from

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

for an undisclosed fee until 2014. He made his

Super League The Super League (officially known as the Betfred Super League due to sponsorship from Betfred and legally known as Super League Europe), is the top-level of the British rugby league system. At present the league consists of twelve teams, of wh ...

debut on 13 February in the 4–2 victory over

Zürich Zürich () is the list of cities in Switzerland, largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zürich. It is located in north-central Switzerland, at the northwestern tip of Lake Zürich. As of January 2020, the municipality has 43 ...

, and on 16 April he also netted twice for the hosts against

Bellinzona Bellinzona ( , , Ticinese ; french: Bellinzone ; german: Bellenz ; rm, Blizuna )is a municipality, a historic Swiss town, and the capital of the canton of Ticino in Switzerland. The town is famous for its three castles (Castelgrande, Montebell ...

(4–0).

Torino

On 18 June 2013, Farnerud was signed by Italian side

Torino Turin ( , Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. T ...

for

€ The euro sign () is the currency sign used for the euro, the official currency of the eurozone and unilaterally adopted by Kosovo and Montenegro. The design was presented to the public by the European Commission on 12 December 1996. It consists o ...

1.8 million on a three-year contract. He made his official debut on 17 August, in a

Coppa Italia The ("Italy Cup") is an annual knockout cup competition in Italian football organized by the FIGC until the 2009–10 season and the Lega Serie A ever since. History The beginning of the tournament was turbulent, due to the complexity of ...

tie against

Pescara Pescara (; nap, label= Abruzzese, Pescàrë; nap, label= Pescarese, Piscàrë) is the capital city of the Province of Pescara, in the Abruzzo region of Italy. It is the most populated city in Abruzzo, with 119,217 (2018) residents (and approxim ...

which ended in a 1–2 loss. On 20 October he scored his first goal in

Serie A The Serie A (), also called Serie A TIM for national sponsorship with TIM, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and the winner is awarded the Scudetto and the Coppa ...

, opening the scoreline in an eventual 3–3 home draw to

Inter Milan Football Club Internazionale Milano, commonly referred to as Internazionale () or simply Inter, and colloquially known as Inter Milan in English-speaking countries, is an Football in Italy, Italian professional Association football, football ...

. After a difficult start to the season, in which he was often benched, Farnerud became a regular and consistent performer for ''Toro'', netting again in the 14th round against

Genoa Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Italian region of Liguria and the List of cities in Italy, sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of the 2011 Italian ce ...

and two days later against

Udinese Udinese Calcio, commonly referred to as Udinese, is a professional Italian football club based in Udine, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, that currently plays in Serie A. It was founded on 30 November 1896 as a sports club, and on 5 July 1911 as a fo ...

BK Häcken

On 9 August 2016, Farnerud returned to his native country, signing a long-term deal with

BK Häcken Bollklubben Häcken, more commonly known as BK Häcken or simply Häcken (), is a Swedish professional association football, football club based in Gothenburg. It currently plays in Allsvenskan, the top tier of Swedish football. Formed on 2 Augu ...

and re-joining his childhood friend

Rasmus Lindgren Rasmus Lindgren (born 29 November 1984) is a Swedish former professional footballer who played as a defender and midfielder. He started off his footballing career at Landskrona BoIS, but spent most of his career in the Netherlands, representin ...

at his new club. He played 11 matches and scored three goals in his debut campaign, and went to provide eight assists during his spell before attracting a serious knee injury in a fixture against

IK Sirius IK Sirius is a Swedish bandy club located in Uppsala, currently playing in Elitserien. IK Sirius were formed in 1907 and play their home games at Studenternas Idrottsplats. History IK Sirius' first success was becoming Swedish runners-up in 1 ...

on 22 July 2017; due to his recurrent physical ailments, he chose to leave by mutual consent in November.

Helsingborg

In October 2018, Farnerud joined

Helsingborgs IF Helsingborgs IF (full name Helsingborgs Idrottsförening), commonly referred to as HIF (), is a Swedish professional football club located in Helsingborg. They play in the Swedish first tier, Allsvenskan, following promotion in the 2021 Superet ...

ahead of the upcoming season. In January 2020, following his release, he trialled with 3. Liga team

SG Sonnenhof Großaspach SG Sonnenhof Großaspach (german: Sportgemeinschaft Sonnenhof Großaspach e.V.), commonly known as Sonnenhof Großaspach, is a German professional football club based in Aspach, Baden-Württemberg. The club play in the Regionalliga Südwest, whi ...

IFK Göteborg

On 14 May 2020, Farnerud signed with

IFK Göteborg Idrottsföreningen Kamraterna Göteborg (officially IFK Göteborg Fotboll), commonly known as IFK Göteborg, IFK (especially locally) or simply Göteborg, is a Swedish professional football club based in Gothenburg. Founded in 1904, it is the ...

. He scored the winning goal in the

2020 Svenska Cupen final The 2020 Svenska Cupen Final was played on 30 July 2020 between Allsvenskan clubs IFK Göteborg and Malmö FF. The match was played on Gamla Ullevi, the home ground of IFK Göteborg. The final was the culmination of the 2019–20 Svenska Cupen, th ...

when Göteborg beat

Malmö FF Malmö Fotbollförening, commonly known as Malmö FF, Malmö, or MFF, is a professional football club and the most successful football club in Sweden in terms of trophies won. Formed in 1910 and affiliated with the Scania Football Association, ...

2–1 in overtime.

FC Chiasso and retirement

In July 2021, Farnerud signed with

Swiss Promotion League The Promotion League, named the YAPEAL Promotion League for sponsorship reasons, is the third tier of the Swiss football league system. Eighteen clubs compete in the league, playing each other twice over the course of the season. The champions are ...

side

on a one-year contract. He announced his retirement from professional football in June 2022, having played 14 games and scored 1 goal for the club.

International career

Youth

After appearing for all the Swedish national youth teams, Farnerud became a permanent fixture in the under-21s, with whom he participated in the

2004 UEFA European Championship The 2004 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as Euro 2004, was the 12th edition of the UEFA European Championship, a quadrennial football competition contested by the men's national teams of UEFA member associations. The ...

Senior

He won his first

cap A cap is a flat headgear, usually with a visor. Caps have crowns that fit very close to the head. They made their first appearance as early as 3200 BC. Caps typically have a visor, or no brim at all. They are popular in casual and informal se ...

for the Sweden national team on 16 February 2003 at age 18, in a

King's Cup __NOTOC__ King's Cup (incl. translations), may refer to: Sports Football * Copa del Rey, Spanish for "King's Cup," the main national knockout tournament in men's football * King Cup (sometimes named King's Cup), Saudi Arabian men's football nati ...

fixture against

Qatar Qatar (, ; ar, قطر, Qaṭar ; local vernacular pronunciation: ), officially the State of Qatar,) is a country in Western Asia. It occupies the Qatar Peninsula on the northeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in the Middle East; it sh ...

; four days later, in the same competition, he scored his first goal to help to a 2–0 defeat of

Thailand Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is bo ...

. On 21 March 2015, after more than five years of absence, Farnerud was called by manager

Erik Hamrén Erik Anders Hamrén (born 27 June 1957) is a Swedish manager and former football player, who is the manager of Danish Superliga club AaB. He also previously coached the Sweden national football team between 2009 and 2016 and the Iceland nationa ...

for a

Euro 2016 The 2016 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2016 (stylised as UEFA EURO 2016) or simply Euro 2016, was the 15th UEFA European Championship, the quadrennial international men's football championship of Europe ...

qualifier In linguistics, a modifier is an optional element in phrase structure or clause structure which ''modifies'' the meaning of another element in the structure. For instance, the adjective "red" acts as a modifier in the noun phrase "red ball", provi ...

against

Moldova Moldova ( , ; ), officially the Republic of Moldova ( ro, Republica Moldova), is a Landlocked country, landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by Romania to the west and Ukraine to the north, east, and south. The List of states ...

and a friendly with

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

. He won a total of eight caps and scored two goals during his time with the national team.

Personal life

Farnerud's older brother,

, also played professional football. He too was a midfielder and a Swedish international before retiring in 2013.

Career statistics

International

International goals

Honours

Stuttgart *

: 2006–07 Strasbourg *

Coupe de la Ligue The Coupe de la Ligue (), known outside France as the French League Cup, was a Single-elimination tournament, knockout cup competition in Football in France, French football organized by the Ligue de Football Professionnel. The tournament was est ...

: 2004–05 IFK Göteborg *

Svenska Cupen Svenska Cupen (, ''The Swedish Cup'') is a knockout cup competition in Swedish football and the main Swedish football cup. Svenska Cupen usually refers to the men's tournament, although a women's tournament is also held. Each year 96 teams compe ...

: 2019–20 Sweden *

2003 File:2003 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The crew of STS-107 perished when the Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated during reentry into Earth's atmosphere; SARS became an epidemic in China, and was a precursor to SARS-CoV-2; A des ...

References

External links

* * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Farnerud, Alexander 1984 births Living people Swedish footballers Association football midfielders Allsvenskan players Landskrona BoIS players BK Häcken players Helsingborgs IF players IFK Göteborg players Ligue 1 players RC Strasbourg Alsace players Bundesliga players VfB Stuttgart players Danish Superliga players Brøndby IF players Swiss Super League players BSC Young Boys players Serie A players Torino F.C. players Sweden youth international footballers Sweden under-21 international footballers Sweden international footballers Swedish expatriate footballers Expatriate footballers in France Expatriate footballers in Germany Expatriate footballers in Denmark Expatriate footballers in Switzerland Expatriate footballers in Italy Swedish expatriate sportspeople in France Swedish expatriate sportspeople in Germany Swedish expatriate sportspeople in Denmark Swedish expatriate sportspeople in Switzerland Swedish expatriate sportspeople in Italy People from Landskrona Municipality Footballers from Skåne County