November has been a month of comebacks for Newcastle United defender Emil Krafth, and that continued on Thursday night.
The 29-year-old is now fully fit after the horrendous knee injury he sustained last year. Emil Krafth was stretchered off during Newcastle’s Carabao Cup win over Tranmere Rovers back in August 2022.
He missed a full year of his career, not returning to training until as recently as September. But, after working so hard behind the scenes, he finally got his reward on November 1st.
Newcastle faced Manchester United in the Carabao Cup, and Krafth was tasked with playing at centre-back alongside Paul Dummett. He was outstanding at Old Trafford, helping the Magpies keep a clean sheet and progress to the quarter finals.
Everyone was absolutely delighted for Krafth, who has since gone on to return to the international stage.
He was named in the recent Sweden squad, and made his comeback for his country on Thursday night – 522 days since his last international appearance.
It will have been an emotional night for Krafth, but it was one for Sweden to forget.
Emil Krafth complete comeback, but Sweden lose 3-0
Sweden were in Euro 2024 qualifying action on Thursday night, as they lined up without star striker Alexander Isak. He is out of action with a groin injury.
But there was one Newcastle player involved, with Krafth coming on in the 60th minute to replace Linus Wahlqvist.
It was a great moment for Krafth, but by then the damage was done. Sweden were already losing 2-0 against 10 men, and the Toon defender was unable to inspire a comeback.
Sweden would lose 3-0 on an embarrassing night, and Krafth was one of few players who were not hammered by the national media.
Swedish outlet Fotbollskanalen gave their player ratings after the match. They split everyone into five grades: world class, very good, good, passed, failed.
No one was deemed higher than ‘passed’, which is what Krafth got for his 20 minute cameo.
On Krafth, they wrote: “The right-back came in with energy and, for example, ran into a good position in the 70th minute, but then the finish was too weak.”
Overall, it was a horrible night for Sweden. Fotbollskanalen gave eight players a ‘failed’ grade, including Manchester United defender Victor Lindelof.
But Krafth was spared that embarrassment, and he will have been so happy to represent his country again after such a terrible injury.
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