Sven-Goran Eriksson has passed away at the age of 76
Former England boss Sven-Goran Eriksson
Sven-Goran Eriksson, who has passed away at the age of 76, made history in 2001 when he became the first foreign coach to be appointed manager of the England football team.
Over the course of five years and 67 matches the Swede took England to the quarter-finals of three major international tournaments, undergoing the usual set of ups and downs that come with football's toughest job.
During this time Eriksson oversaw the redemption of David Beckham, the emergence of Wayne Rooney but, unfortunately, was unable to overcome the national team's penalty shootout curse. FourFourTwo takes a look at Eriksson's five greatest games in charge of the Three Lions...
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Croatia 2-4 England (2004)
Wayne Rooney celebrates scoring at Euro 2004 (Image credit: Getty Images)
England’s Euro 2004 group stage began with the dramatic 2-1 defeat to France, but the ship was quickly steadied thanks to an 18-year-old Wayne Rooney-inspired win over Switzerland before Eriksson’s side faced Croatia with a quarter-final spot on the line.
After conceding a scrappy fifth-minute Niko Kovac goal, Paul Scholes would equalise on 40 minutes before Rooney thumped home in first-half stoppage time. The teenager would add another in the second half, making it four goals in two games, repaying his manager’s faith as the Three Lions looked to be peaking just in time for the knock-out stages.
Alas, Rooney would break a metatarsal against Portugal in the quarter-final and with it went England’s hopes of winning their first trophy since 1966.
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Denmark 0-3 England (2002)
Sven Goran Eriksson during his time as England boss (Image credit: Getty Images)
Eriksson’s first tournament with England was the 2002 World Cup and a gangbusters opening 45 minutes in the Swede’s first knockout game with the Three Lions got fans believing.
Goals from Rio Ferdinand, Michael Owen and Emile Heskey meant that England went into the half-time dressing room 3-0 up as England cruised into the quarter-finals.
But just like the Euro 2004 quarter-final exit, one hugely unfortunate moment did for England, as Ronaldinho’s lob evaded David Seaman and ended English dreams in the process.
Argentina 0-1 England (2002)
David Beckham celebrates the win over Argentina at the 2002 World Cup
Earlier in the 2002 World Cup, Eriksson went up against Marcelo Bielsa’s Argentina side which had stormed through the South American qualification programme in what was a highly-charged match for the Three Lions.
England - and David Beckham, especially - still had the bitter taste of their 1998 World Cup defeat in their mouths, but Sven’s team would show a resilient, focused side that did not let emotion get the better of them, much like the man himself. England edged past their rivals 1-0, thanks to a penalty from their skipper, who was able to put an exclamation point on his own personal redemption arc following his red card against the same opponents four years earlier.
England 2-2 Greece (2001)
David Beckham celebrates after scoring his famous free-kick for England against Greece (Image credit: Alamy)
Beckham was front and centre of England’s Eriksson era, with the former Manchester United and Real Madrid man being handed the captain’s armband and playing his best international football under the Swede.
Eriksson had taken over England after Kevin Keegan’s Wembley implosion after Germany’s 1-0 win in October 2000, meaning the Swede began the World Cup qualifying campaign on the back foot.
It would all come down to the final game, which saw Beckham go on a one-man mission against Greece at Old Trafford before he scored his iconic 93rd-minute free kick that booked England’s place in the 2002 World Cup.
Germany 1-5 England (2001)
Emile Heskey celebrates
It’s easy to forget just how badly the old-school tabloid press and sections of the fanbase reacted to the news of a foreigner being handed the England manager’s job.
Eriksson’s class meant rather than rally against the media, he would use his charm, but it was one night in Munich that did more than anything to win hearts and minds of the fans.
Michael Owen netted a hat-trick, Steven Gerrard struck from range and even Heskey scored. England’s biggest rivals were humiliated in their own backyard in what was one of the best Three Lions away days not just of Sven’s era, but of any time in their history.
For more than a decade Joe Mewis has worked in football journalism as a reporter and editor, with stints at Mirror Football and LeedsLive among others. He is the author of four football history books that include times on Leeds United and the England national team.
