Martin Oskar Johan Bengtsson (born 14 March 1986) is a Swedish former professional footballer who played as a midfielder.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Martin Oskar Johan Bengtsson | ||
| Date of birth | 14 March 1986 | ||
| Place of birth | Örebro, Sweden | ||
| Position(s) | Midfielder | ||
| Youth career | |||
| –2002 | IK Sturehov | ||
| 2002–2003 | Örebro SK | ||
| 2004 | Inter Milan | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2003 | Örebro SK | 1 | (0) |
| 2005 | ÖSK Ungdom | ||
| International career | |||
| 2002–2003 | Sweden U17 | 20 | (3) |
| 2004 | Sweden U19 | 2 | (0) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Club career
editBengtsson started playing football for IK Sturehov as a child and stayed with the club until he was signed by Örebro SK as a 15-year-old in 2002.[1] He made his Allsvenskan debut at 17 years old for Örebro SK during the 2003 season in a game against Enköpings SK when he came on as a substitute for Mirza Jelecak.[2] After the 2003 season, Bengtsson left Örebro SK to sign for the Serie A club Inter Milan.[3] However, he left the Italian club after only nine months after suffering from depression and ultimately trying to take his own life.[1]
In 2005, he signed for Örebro SK Ungdom in Division 2 Norra Svealand but only played for one season before retiring from professional football at the age of 19.[4]
International career
editBengtsson appeared 20 times for the Sweden U17 team, scoring three goals.[5] He also appeared twice for the Sweden U19 team.[5]
Personal life
editIn 2007, he wrote the autobiography I skuggan av San Siro (English: In the shadow of San Siro) about his experiences as a young footballer at Inter Milan.[6] In 2020, the book was adapted into a movie called Tigers directed by Ronnie Sandahl.[7]
After quitting football, Bengtsson took up careers in journalism and music.[8]
Career statistics
editClub
edit| Club | Season | League | Svenska Cupen | Continental | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Örebro SK | 2003 | Allsvenskan | 1 | 0 | — | |||||
| ÖSK Ungdom | 2005 | Division 2 Norra Svealand | — | |||||||
| Career total | 0 | 0 | ||||||||
International
edit| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sweden U17 | 2002 | 12 | 3 |
| 2003 | 8 | 0 | |
| Total | 20 | 3 | |
| Sweden U19 | 2004 | 2 | 0 |
| Total | 2 | 0 | |
| Career total | 22 | 3 | |
References
edit- ^ a b "Martin Bengtsson: "Man ska inte prata om såna här saker"". www.expressen.se (in Swedish). Retrieved 5 November 2020.
- ^ a b "SvenskaFans". www.svenskafans.com. Retrieved 5 November 2020.
- ^ "Örebros 17-årige talang klar för Inter". www.expressen.se (in Swedish). Retrieved 5 November 2020.
- ^ Bengtsson, Martin (2007). I skuggan av San Siro. Norstedts. ISBN 9789113100708.
- ^ a b c "Martin Bengtsson - Spelarstatistik - Svensk fotboll". www.svenskfotboll.se. (in Swedish). Retrieved 5 November 2020.
- ^ "Pojkdrömmen kunde ha kostat honom livet". SVT Sport (in Swedish). 23 April 2007. Retrieved 5 November 2020.
- ^ "Ronnie Sandahls "Tigrar" får världspremiär i Busan". MovieZine. Retrieved 5 November 2020.
- ^ "Martin Bengtsson exclusive interview: Inter Milan, depression and seeing his lowest moments play out in a movie".