Fridolina Rolfö joined Sweden's European Championship camp in Åhus on Monday for further examination of the Barcelona star's ligament injuries in her left foot.
When national team captain Peter Gerhardsson will make a decision on whether it will really be European Championship play in Switzerland for the 31-year-old is unclear. Blågult meet Denmark in the premiere on July 4 in Geneva.
Want Rolfö in the European Championship squad
One scenario is that he has ice in his stomach and waits for Rolfö until the end of the group stage or even until a quarter-final.
It's entirely up to Peter, Fridolina and the medical team to feel. If she is in a situation where she can still contribute, then Fridolina, with her experiences and quality, is a player I want to have in my European Championship squad every day of the week, says central defender veteran Magdalena Eriksson.
Even if it's only in the last group stage match?
We'll take that when it comes, but absolutely. Fridolina is a player who can do that little extra no matter which nation we meet. She has won the Champions League several times, so she's a player you want to have when it gets tough, says Eriksson.
Sweden concludes the group stage against Germany on July 12. The quarter-finals begin just over a week later. The second European Championship match is played against Poland on July 8.
Johanna Rytting Kaneryd says that Rolfö is an "extremely important player".
She will mean a lot to us in a coming championship. So I really hope she has time to become game-ready so that we can have her with us.
When she is asked if the national team can afford to wait a few matches, Rytting Kaneryd hints that Rolfö is a player who may need to be treated specially.
When it comes to certain players, there are some... how long can you wait? I don't know. It's something the medical team has to decide. But she is incredibly important to us.
"Very used to"
For example, Australia waited for their attacking star Sam Kerr far into the home World Championship 2023. Kerr injured herself the day before the premiere and did not play at all in the three group stage matches. She made substitute appearances in both the round of 16 and the quarter-finals before playing 90 minutes in the semi-final and the bronze match against Sweden (1–3).
We are very, very used to being in such situations with the club team and also in the national team. It was a situation before the Olympic Games in Japan (2021) where I also came in half-injured and worked my way forward to being able to play every match, except for the first match, says Magdalena Eriksson.
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Lasse Mannheimer/TT
Facts: Sweden's football European Championship
TT
Build-up
June 23–25: Training in Åhus.
June 26: Rehearsal against Norway in Oslo.
European Championship
July 4 (6:00 PM): Denmark-Sweden, Geneva.
July 8 (9:00 PM): Poland-Sweden, Luzern.
July 12 (9:00 PM): Sweden-Germany, Zürich.
July 17 or 19: Possible quarter-final.
July 22–23: Possible semi-final.
July 27: Possible final.
National team star Fridolina Rolfö injured herself in the Nations League victory against Denmark on June 3.
A few days later, Barcelona announced that the 31-year-old had suffered an injury to two ligaments in her left ankle.
Despite the injury, Rolfö was selected by national team captain Peter Gerhardsson for the European Championship squad.
On Monday, when the European Championship camp began in Åhus, the national team announced that she will miss training during her stay in Skåne.
"Now that Fridolina is joining us in the national team, we have the opportunity to conduct follow-up examinations over the next few days, for further dialogue on handling going forward together with the club team Barcelona. At present, we do not have the opportunity to provide any further updates," said national team doctor Houman Ebrahimi in a statement from the national team.
Tottenham player Matilda Vinberg has been called up to the European Championship squad as a reserve for Rolfö and will be part of the preparations for the championship.
Sweden play their European Championship premiere against Denmark on July 4.
