AIK midfielder is not alone in having Hungarian roots in the men's team.
Anton Salétros becomes the only name that the audience at Puskás Aréna can relate to as if he were a compatriot, as Sebastian Nanasi and Viktor Gyökeres, who come from families with Hungarian roots, are injured.
I was there (in Hungary) a lot during the summers. I have some family and friends down there, so it's going to be a special match, says Anton Salétros after the national team's training session at Bosön on Lidingö.
”The world's most difficult language”
But talking to him in Hungarian is pointless.
It's the world's most difficult language. I've tried to learn it but it's completely impossible.
He himself doesn't make a big deal of playing for Sweden against Hungary.
Once the match begins, it's football that's going to be played. But I'm half-Hungarian, so it's going to be a bit special before kickoff.
He thinks it's going to be even more emotional for his dad, Laszlo.
He's going to come with some friends and family. I think it's going to be a huge moment for him to see his son hopefully play against his home country.
Salétros had the opportunity to play for Hungary, but it was never an option.
No, I've never had those thoughts. I was born in Sweden and want to represent Sweden. Now I've got the honor of doing it, says the midfielder, who has received a lot of trust since Jon Dahl Tomasson took over as national team coach in early 2024.
Despite it being a friendly match and several Swedish stars are missing, Salétros attaches great importance to the meeting on Friday evening.
Important friendly match
It's important ahead of the World Championship qualification that we have a good match, play according to our principles and preferably take a win. Even though it's friendly matches, they're build-up matches ahead of the World Championship qualification, which is incredibly important, he says.
Salétros extended his contract with AIK until 2028 last winter. His longing for a new foreign career has cooled down somewhat.
- The thoughts now are that we're going to go into the Conference League qualification with AIK, and we still have a chance to be up there (in Allsvenskan) and that's something you want to be part of, he says.
The 29-year-old Salétros has previously played for Újpest, Rostov, Sarpsborg, and Caen.
