Newcastle United defender Emil Krafth started for Sweden for the first time since June 2022 last night.
After more than a year out of action, Krafth was given the opportunity to start for his country as they beat Estonia in a Euro 2024 qualifier on Sunday.
The 29-year-old had made his international return last week, having been named in the Sweden squad for the first time since his horrific injury.
Krafth came off the bench during an embarrassing night for his country. They were beaten 3-0 by Azerbaijan, and Krafth was one of few players who was not slated by the national media.
But Sweden were able to bounce back on Sunday, as they beat Estonia 2-0 in Solna thanks to goals from Viktor Claesson and Emil Forsberg.
With Alexander Isak out injured, Krafth was the only Newcastle player representing Sweden, and he received praise from the Swedish media for his performance.
Emil Krafth impresses during Sweden win
Following the 2-0 win over Estonia, Swedish website Fotbollskanalen provided their player ratings.
The top grade they gave was ‘good’, which six players received, one of which was Krafth.
On the Toon defender, they wrote: “Took offensive initiatives and had some nice plays. Involved in the 1-0 goal. A good effort from the right back.”
Back to Newcastle for Krafth
You would not normally associate Krafth with his attacking quality, so it is good to hear him having an impact in the final third.
It is not something he ever does in a Toon shirt, with Krafth scoring one goal for Newcastle since his arrival in 2019 – and that came in front of zero fans during the lockdown era.
It is great to see him get another 90 minutes in the tank after such a horrific knee injury. This is his second full game since his comeback, having excelled during the Carabao Cup win over Manchester United.
Now Krafth will return to Tyneside, having added two more Sweden caps to his collection. His attention will now turn back to his domestic duties, where Newcastle are preparing to face Chelsea in the Premier League.
Given the fact that Dan Burn and Matt Targett are injured and Lewis Hall is ineligible, it feels likely that we will see Krafth in some capacity on Saturday. He will surely feature off the bench in the second half, especially with Eddie Howe having one eye on the looming Champions League trip to Paris.
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