Johansson, 28, was the big surprise when national team manager Graham Potter named the starting eleven against Ukraine in Thursday night's successful semi-final in the World Cup playoff.
Only his second international match, his first start - and in one of Swedish football's most important matches in years.
Afterwards, the right-back received great praise from Potter. And it was all about the northerner from Örnsköldsvik, whose path to the top went from Friska Viljor and Sandviken to Mjällby and then last winter with the MLS club Dallas.
"You don't know where you would have been if you'd been in a different environment. It's hard to answer," he says of the development from Division 1 player in Sandviken five years ago to national team player today.
"I've had setbacks, but I've pushed through them and also had to deal with successes. I've really put in the work and it's paid off pretty well, you could say," he says.
Took sleeping pills
One non-football goal in recent days was to overcome jet lag and get enough sleep.
"I thought I was turning the clock back when I fell asleep at half past ten and thought that was good. Then I woke up at twelve and thought I'd be awake for a few hours."
Some sleeping pills helped Johansson get the sleep an elite athlete needs to perform. The night before the playoff semi-final in Valencia, he took an extra dose to make sure he got a good night's sleep.
Shortly after the 3-1 victory against Ukraine, Herman Johansson was drained of energy.
"That's how it should be after a match. You give it your all."
“Frozen to ice”
The first time Johansson realized that the national team was not something distant or an unattainable dream was in June last year. That's when he learned that he was included in Jon Dahl Tomasson's preliminary squad.
"I remember when they came to Mjällby and showed the full squad. I almost froze. I was so proud and happy just about that. Now we are here, in the playoffs, and we won. It's a bit surreal, actually," he says.
Herman Johansson's debut for the national team came in the start against Slovenia in the World Cup qualifiers in November.
On Tuesday, Poland awaits in Solna. The winner will play in the World Cup this summer.
