Jesper Blomqvist

When Manchester United were drawn against AC Milan in the last 16 of the UEFA Champions League all attention focused on David Beckham’s impending return to Old Trafford - but there was another ex-Red who had one foot in either camp.

Jesper Blomqvist only enjoyed one full season at both Milan and United but still has strong ties to both clubs.

Despite an all too brief spell at the Theatre of Dreams the now 36-year-old still managed to play an integral part as United won an astonishing treble in 1998/99 while his short, and often frustrating, spell at the San Siro still brings back fond memories.

The Swedish winger first came on the radar after almost single handedly putting Sir Alex Ferguson’s men to the sword as IFK Goteborg defeated the English champions 3-1 in the group stages of the Champions League in 1994.

Goteborg would continue to defy the odds that year and topped the group ahead of United and Barcelona and were only knocked out in the quarter-final on away goals to Bayern Munich.

“I was in the form of my life,” Blomqvist recalls.

“When you are in that kind of state you do not remember much of the games. Obviously I watched it after and I felt that I could almost dribble wherever I wanted and do whatever I wanted.

“It was a lovely feeling to finish top of the group ahead of teams such as Barcelona and Manchester United.”

Blomqvist was destined for bigger things and had his heart set on a move to Milan in 1996 despite initial interest from United.

“When I first moved to Milan I knew (Sir Alex) Ferguson had an interest but I preferred Italy because I thought AC Milan were the best team in Europe at that time so I really set my goals to get a move there,” he highlighted.

“I had a one year spell there and then they changed the coach and (Fabio) Capello came in and brought in a lot of new players and I moved to Parma.

“I played another year in Parma under (Carlo) Ancelotti and then he got fired and a new coach came in. He wanted to change the system and play another way which didn’t really suit me.

“That was when Ferguson came in the picture and in quite a short time I decided to move to Manchester.”

Blomqvist was initially wary of his decision to join United with many stating he was too light-weight for the Premier League but the left-sider was soon proving his critics wrong although he wasn’t entirely satisfied with his own performances.

“The truth was that I really wanted to stay in Italy because I liked it at Parma,” he explained.

“I was still a little wary about moving to England because I was injured when I signed. After a few weeks I still wasn’t fully aware of how good we were going to be that season, you didn’t feel it straight away where you thought ‘This is going to be the year’.

Famous faces

“We had signed Jaap Stam and Dwight Yorke as well and they were so famous before they moved to United but they both became really, really great signings and we had some other players who took some really big steps that year.

“I played a lot of games but I still wasn’t too happy because I had a lot of small injury problems every now and then, I never got the chance to play for three months in a row and pick up the form I had at Goteborg for example.

“I felt like I would play well for a few weeks and then get injured and then I would have to regain my form and my mental belief.

“It was a little bit up and down but I firmly felt the year after that was going to be my best year because I had already been there one season and I started to know the club and felt much more at ease and at home.”

Having already captured the Premier League title and the FA Cup United’s season was about to culminate in the most dramatic fashion on a sunny May evening at the Nou Camp against Bayern Munich in the final of the UEFA Champions League.

With midfielders Roy Keane and Paul Scholes unavailable through suspension Blomqvist was in the unusual position of knowing he would start against the Germans. Understandably nervous the night before the clash the former Sweden international began writing positive notes about the game ahead in his hotel room.

“It was mental exercise to calm down and to get the confidence you need to play. I really felt it was a huge game,” he remembered.

“I hadn’t played for three or four weeks so I hadn’t played in the FA Cup final and I didn’t play in the last league game against Tottenham so I wasn’t sure about my own form and that created a bit of insecurity in my own game.”

Stoppage-time goals from Teddy Sheringham and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer earned United an unforgettable 2-1 win in Barcelona but the jubilation was short lived for Blomqvist with the final proving to be his last competitive game in a United shirt.

Having picked up a knee injury during pre-season Blomqvist missed the entirety of the following 1999/00 campaign and was transferred to Everton in November 2001. Blomqvist managed 18 appearances for the Toffees before moving to Charlton a year later where his injury problems showed no signs of abating.

A short stint back home with Djurgarden materialised but the winger called time on his career in 2005 and began working as a pundit on Swedish television. However he still felt unsatisfied.

While some of his former team-mates such as Roy Keane and Roberto Donadoni seemed destined to become managers from the beginning the quiet and unassuming Blomqvist has surprised many with his chosen career path.

Despite his shy persona, Blomqvist played his entire career with his shirt sleeves nervously covering his hands, the Swede has decided to move into the cut-throat business of football management. But having played under some of the finest managers of the modern era, notably Capello, Ancelotti and Ferguson, perhaps the decision to manage should have been more expected than first thought.

“I had been working in TV in Sweden for two years before I started coaching,” Blomqvist, who is currently learning his trade in the Swedish second tier as assistant manager at Hammarby, pointed out.

“The idea of coaching began growing inside me over the last year or so. I was injured a lot and I began thinking what to do next. It woke up quite late in me, it wasn’t something I planned but it came more and more and of course you feel you have a lot of knowledge you have built up during the years in your career that you want to try and pass on.

Learn from mistakes

“You try and take little bits (from each manager) but you still have to try it out in practice and learn for yourself.

“You learn from your mistakes and it takes time too, that’s my biggest experience so far. It is hard work and it is going to take time to become a good coach.

“At the moment I am really enjoying it. Hammarby are a big club in Sweden even if it is the First Division. You soon realise that when you get into coaching and management that it is really difficult.

“There are a lot of things to work on and think about, there are so many different aspects of it and you have to be good at them all but of course it is good to gain experience.”

Having reached the highest level during his playing career Blomqvist is keen to rise to the top in management but for now he is more than happy to cut his teeth in Sweden.

“When you look at all the big coaches in the UEFA Champions League today they all started at the bottom. It is hard work. Maybe you can only find a few in the top leagues in Europe that started at the top, all the others work hard for 10 years and then you start to find the keys to solve certain situations, how you want to shape and create your team, what your philosophy about leadership and management is,” he stated.

“So it is really about experience and again that is about hard work and really taking a lot of time to gain that experience.

“I will keep trying to improve where I am now and for me it is a great challenge to work here and that is enough for me at the moment. But someday you have the dreams to be at the highest level.”