It did not take Graham Potter long to find a new job. Only three weeks passed between Nuno Espirito Santo taking his job in the Premier League and the former West Ham United boss being appointed Sweden’s new head coach.
While his reputation took a battering during that eight-month spell in charge of the Hammers, not to mention his miserable stint in the Chelsea dugout, Graham Potter remains a man with many admirers over in Scandinavia.
It was he who put Ostersunds on the map, after all. From the fourth-tier of Swedish football to the Europa League knockout stages, with a famous win over Arsenal along the way.
So when Jon Dahl Tomasson was given the boot after a 1-0 home defeat by Kosovo, the Swedish FA immediately made Potter their top choice to replace the ex-Blackburn Rovers coach. They got their man, too, albeit on a short-term basis.
Potter, who left West Ham United mired in the Premier League’s relegation zone, signs an initial five-month deal. Qualifying for the 2026 World Cup is the goal. An ambitious one, given that Sweden are bottom of their qualifying group, but not quite an impossible task.
The Blue and Yellow can still reach the tournament via the play-offs, or through the Nations League.
Potter will be supported by a familiar face, too. Linus Kandolin left West Ham alongside the Solihull-born 50-year-old at the end of September. He too looks set to find a new role less than a month later.
Graham Potter reunited with former West Ham United coach Linus Kandolin in Sweden
Speaking at his official unveiling this week, Potter admitted that he planned to reunite with a number of coaches he knows and trusts.
Bjorn Hamberg, who worked with Potter at Ostersunds, Swansea, Brighton and Hove Albion and Chelsea, is expected to join his coaching staff. Andreas Georgson, the former Manchester United set-piece coach now under contract at Tottenham Hotspur, is another likely to slot in.
Ditto Linus Kandolin, available having only spent two-and-a-half months in East London.
Potter raved about the ‘excellent’ Kandolin back in July. And, after he was sacked as part of that September clear-out, a reunion now seems inevitable on the international stage.
“They are coming in,” national team director and ex-Arsenal loanee Kim Kallstrom tells Aftonbladet when asked about Hamberg, Georgson and Kandolin. “We are adding a little to the staff based on the discussions we have had with Graham and the wishes he has had.
“Graham, of course, wants to have those who understand how he thinks.”
Sebastian Larsson, the former set-piece specialist whose free-kicks lit up Sunderland and Birmingham City, will also form part of Potter’s backroom staff.
“I am extremely proud,” Potter said, all-but confirming that Kandolin will join as an assistant to current lead goalkeeping coach Mats Elvendahl. A similar role to the one he played at West Ham alongside the now-departed Casper Ankergren.
“Yes, we will have two goalkeeping coaches. [Also] Sebastian will be very important for us.”
Danny Murphy says Potter is fortunate to land Alexander Isak and Viktor Gyokeres
Like Potter, Linus Kandolin is extremely well-regarded in Sweden.
He played a big role as Elfsborg finished runners-up in the 2023 Allsvenskan, while helping Icelandic international Hakon Valdimarsson secure himself a £2.5 million move to Brentford.
As for Potter, former England midfielder Danny Murphy feels the ex-West Ham boss is a little fortunate to inherit a £190 million frontline of Alexander Isak and Viktor Gyokeres, given how his time in East London ended.
“It’s quite an exciting squad,” Murphy told talkSPORT. “And they’ve still got a chance [to reach the World Cup]. With Isak and Gyokeres up top, the likes of [Tottenham’s Lucas] Bergvall, they shouldn’t be losing the games they’re losing.
“So for Potter, and any other person looking at that job, you’re looking at the personnel and thinking, ‘[there is] easy room for improvement here and still a great chance to lead a side to the World Cup’.
“He’s probably quite fortunate if he gets the job in after recent failings. If they can qualify via the play-offs, he’s really in business.
“But the other thing for him as well is it’s probably a really appetising opportunity because he is well thought of over there, and also the pressure is not the same with being battered here, isn’t it?”
