The Olympic Games ended with a tough medal miss and over a month ago, national team captain Glenn Solberg announced that he is leaving Blågult.
I was just as shocked as everyone else in handball Sweden and hadn't heard anything on the grapevine, says Jim Gottfridsson.
After Solberg's departure, media reports emerged that the Norwegian had frozen out assistant national team captain Michael Apelgren during the Olympic Games. "Very exaggerated, but no smoke without fire", said Apelgren himself when he recently took over the job as national team captain.
Gottfridsson, the now 32-year-old playmaker and national team star, says:
I don't want to get into Glenn's relationships within the coaching team, that's a question that has to be answered by people higher up in the association. But we players have always gotten along well and we players have always attended all camps. And three medals in five years is still a pretty good grade, I think.
"Handball nerds"
This week's national team matches will be the first with Apelgren as head coach. The same Apelgren who has recruited Jim Gottfridsson to Pick Szeged from next season.
That we have a good relationship is no secret, nice for me to have a coach who believes in me. Unfortunately, it hasn't been the case in Flensburg for the past year and a half. Both "Apel" and I are very handball nerds, we'll probably sit and talk tactics a lot, says "Gotte" who is currently being sparingly used in his German club team.
It will be different in Blågult. Not least because Felix Claar, the Magdeburg star who usually shares the role of center back with Gottfridsson, is injured and will likely miss the World Championship after the turn of the year.
New roles
For Gottfridsson, it means a new-old role – with greater responsibility.
It's obviously very sad for Felix's sake. But when you know you're getting a slightly bigger role, it often feels liberating. You dare to make a few more mistakes to succeed, says Gottfridsson.
And speaking of new roles: This interview is being conducted in connection with Gottfridsson being presented as an ambassador for the children's rights organization Plan International Sweden, a role he will share with football star Fridolina Rolfö in the future.
But first and foremost, there are matches against France in Orleans (Wednesday) and Denmark in Linköping (Sunday), matches that are part of the EHF Euro Cup.
We're being thrown into a week with the two best teams in the world as opponents. And a new national team captain with new ideas. It's going to be very exciting.
