Jan Jansson (footballer)

Anders Jan Ove Jansson (born 26 January 1968) is a former Swedish professional footballer who played as a midfielder. He played professionally in Sweden and England. He won seven caps for the Sweden national team, and was a squad member for his country at UEFA Euro 1992.

Jan Jansson
Personal information
Full name Anders Jan Ove Jansson
Date of birth (1968-01-26) 26 January 1968
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)
1996–1997Port Vale (loan) 11 (1)
1997–1999 Port Vale 40 (5)
1999–2001 Norrköping 15 (0)
Total 309 (62)
National team
1986 Sweden U19 2 (0)
1988–1990 Sweden U21 14 (3)
1991–1994 Sweden 7 (0)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

Club career

Kalmar FF

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.

Östers IF

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.

IFK 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.

Loan to Port Vale

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

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.[1] 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."[1] However, he featured just eight times in the 1998–99 season before being released by new manager Brian Horton in February.

Return to IFK Norrköping

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 was a part of the Sweden U21 team that reached the semi-finals of the 1990 UEFA European Under-21 Championship.[2]

He won seven caps for Sweden between 1991 and 1994 and represented his country at UEFA Euro 1992 and the Joe Robbie Cup.[2]

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
AppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Kalmar[4] 1985 Allsvenskan 10
1986 Allsvenskan 170
1987 Swedish football Division 1 163
Total 343
Östers[4] 1988 Allsvenskan 202
1989 Swedish football Division 1 2614
1990 Allsvenskan 225
1991 Allsvenskan 3113
1992 Allsvenskan 288
Total 12742
Norrköping[4] 1993 Allsvenskan 238
1994 Allsvenskan 190
1995 Allsvenskan 250
1996 Allsvenskan 61
1997 Allsvenskan 92
Total 8211
Port Vale[5]1996–97First Division1111000121
1997–98First Division3350020355
1998–99First Division70001080
Total 5161030556
Norrköping[4] 1999 Allsvenskan 40
2000 Allsvenskan 50
2001 Allsvenskan 60
Total 150
Total 30962103031362

International statistics

Sweden national team[4]
YearAppsGoals
199110
199240
199310
199410
Total70

Honours

Kalmar
Östers
Norrköping

References

  1. 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.
  2. "Jan Jansson - Spelarstatistik - Svensk fotboll". www.svenskfotboll.se. (in Swedish). Retrieved 18 August 2020.
  3. "Cult Hero 22: Jan Jansson". onevalefan.co.uk. 30 January 2012. Retrieved 1 June 2020.
  4. "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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