This biographical article needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. (February 2008) (Find sources: Erik Edman – news, books, scholar)

Erik Edman
Personal information
Date of birth	November 11, 1978 (1978-11-11) (age 31)
Place of birth	Huskvarna, Sweden
Height	1.79 m (5 ft 10+1⁄2 in)
Playing position	Left back
Club information
Current club	Wigan Athletic
Number	3
Youth career
	Habo IF
Senior career1
Years	Club	App (Gls)*
1994–1999 1999–2000 2000 2000–2001 2001–2004 2004–2005 2005–2008 2008–	Helsingborgs IF Torino Karlsruher SC AIK SC Heerenveen Tottenham Hotspur Stade Rennais Wigan Athletic	061 0(1) 000 0(0) 008 0(0) 021 0(0) 091 0(1) 031 0(1) 056 0(0) 007 0(0)
National team2
2001–	Sweden	057 0(1)
1 Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 11:05, 24 May 2009 (UTC). 2 National team caps and goals correct as of 18 January, 2008. * Appearances (Goals)

Erik Edman, Swedish pronunciation: [ˈeːrɪk ˈeːdmɑn] (born November 11, 1978 in Huskvarna) is a Swedish footballer, currently playing for Wigan Athletic. He is a left back, but has also established himself as a centre back.

[edit] Club career

Edman is an experienced left back, who has played for a number of clubs during his career. Edman was a player at Helsingborgs IF until 1999, which was his first time leaving Sweden and moved abroad. In 2001, after having unremarkable spells at Italian club Torino and Karlsruher SC in Germany, Edman returned to Sweden and joined AIK for one season.

After that, SC Heerenveen in the Netherlands brought Edman from Sweden. Following Euro 2004, Tottenham Hotspur in England brought Edman from the Netherlands. Edman quickly established himself at the club, and will probably be best remembered at Spurs for his stunning goal, which he scored from 38.17 yards out in the Premier League match against Liverpool on April 16, 2005.^[1]

However, in the summer of 2005, the arrival of South Korean left back Lee Young-Pyo led Edman to make the decision of leaving England. In the last week of August, Spurs accepted an offer from French club Rennes. It didn't take long for Edman to impress his new manager, and once again established himself as first choice at left-back.

In January 2008, Edman was signed by English Premier League side Wigan Athletic for a fee of £500,000 ^[2]. The arrival of Edman was a good deal for Wigan Athletic, since the club did not find a good replacement after the departure of Leighton Baines, the previous summer. On 22 March 2008, Edman was injured in a match against Blackburn Rovers, damaging his anterior crutiate ligament in his knee. This means he missed the rest of Wigan's season as well as Euro 2008. Edman made his return to the Wigan team as a substitute on 14 January 2009 at Old Trafford, as Wigan lost 1-0 to Manchester United. However, he has lacked playing time due to injuries and Maynor Figueroa's impressive performances throughout the season which have earned him a spot in Steve Bruce's starting eleven.

[edit] International career

Edman has been a part of the Swedish national team setup since 2001. In 2002, he was part of the 2002 FIFA World Cup squad, but did not make any appearance and was only an unused substitute. He then began to feature more regularly after the 2002 FIFA World Cup, and at Euro 2004 and the 2006 FIFA World Cup, he started almost all of Sweden's games. He now has a huge amount of experience, with over 50 international caps to his name.

His only goal for the Swedish national team was in the 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification against Bulgaria at the Vassil Levski Stadium on March 26, 2005. He scored a free-kick in this match.

[edit] Honours

Swedish Defender of the Year ("Årets back"): 2004

[edit] Personal life

Erik Edman married Hanna Kjellsson in December 2006. Erik and Hanna have a son named Elias, born in September 2005, and a baby daughter - named Nora - born in May 2008.

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Erik Edman career stats at Soccerbase
• Erik Edman's Profile, Photo & Stats
• Erik Edman's profile (in Swedish)

Sweden squad v • d • e Sweden squad – 2002 FIFA World Cup 1 Hedman • 2 Mellberg • 3 P. Andersson • 4 Mjällby • 5 Michael Svensson • 6 Linderoth • 7 Alexandersson • 8 A. Svensson • 9 Ljungberg • 10 Allbäck • 11 Larsson • 12 Kihlstedt • 13 Antonelius • 14 Edman • 15 Jakobsson • 16 Lucic • 17 Magnus Svensson • 18 Jonson • 19 Farnerud • 20 D. Andersson • 21 Ibrahimović • 22 A. Andersson • 23 Isaksson • Coach: Lagerbäck & Söderberg v • d • e Sweden squad – UEFA Euro 2004 1 Isaksson • 2 Lucic • 3 Mellberg • 4 Mjällby • 5 Edman • 6 Linderoth • 7 Nilsson • 8 Svensson • 9 Ljungberg • 10 Ibrahimović • 11 Larsson • 12 Hedman • 13 Hansson • 14 Östlund • 15 Jakobsson • 16 Källström • 17 Andersson • 18 Jonson • 19 Farnerud • 20 Allbäck • 21 Wilhelmsson • 22 Wahlstedt • 23 Kihlstedt • Coach: Lagerbäck & Söderberg v • d • e Sweden squad – 2006 FIFA World Cup 1 Isaksson • 2 Nilsson • 3 Mellberg • 4 Lucic • 5 Edman • 6 Linderoth • 7 Alexandersson • 8 A. Svensson • 9 Ljungberg • 10 Ibrahimović • 11 Larsson • 12 Alvbåge • 13 Hansson • 14 Stenman • 15 K. Svensson • 16 Källström • 17 Elmander • 18 Jonson • 19 Andersson • 20 Allbäck • 21 Wilhelmsson • 22 Rosenberg • 23 Shaaban • Coach: Lagerbäck