david in sweden Posted 29 June, 2009 Share Posted 29 June, 2009 (edited) lots of praise for him on the OS, but I think that lots of us might like to add our thoughts after he has been forced to give up his fitness fight, it would have been great to have seen him one more season. For a while it seemed as if Lunderkvam and Svensson had been there for years, such was their domination of the defence in the years 2002- on..Michael Svensson was already a hero figure in the Swedish national side before signing for Saints. His brave and sometimes, tough " no-nonsense " performances made him lots of friends in a very short time and it was sad to see him disappear from the scene. Older fans who recall the likes of; John McGrath, Dave Watson, " Razor " Ruddock and Mark Wright will joyfully recall his dominating presence of the penalty area - at all costs. There are many who think that his prolonged absence through injury was one of the key " on the field " reasons which led to our relegation. However, I heard an unusual tribute to MS a few years back. We were lucky enough to see the Saints on summer tour in Sweden during the Strachan era. We visited the south of Sweden (my mother-in-law's birthplace) where MS grew up, and met an old aunt (a retired schoolteacher) who knew Michael very well. She told us that when MS was around 13-14, he volunteered to be a class " buddy " to a fellow pupil who was disadvantaged, and needed some social support in class and in the playground. " Michael was a good lad " she said, " he took to the task well, and helped the youngster to overcome his handicap, was a good friend to him and helped him adjust easier in school ". A great testimony to someone with leadership skills, and a great role model. Let's hope the new management is sensible enough to keep him on and work with our youngsters at SFC. Edited 29 June, 2009 by david in sweden Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thedelldays Posted 29 June, 2009 Share Posted 29 June, 2009 cheers mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John B Posted 29 June, 2009 Share Posted 29 June, 2009 cheers mike I think Killer's injury led to our relegation from the Premiership. His leadership and defensive ability was sadly missing especially under Wigley's reign . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Block 5 Posted 29 June, 2009 Share Posted 29 June, 2009 Cheers Killer! Saints legend. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Channon's Sideburns Posted 29 June, 2009 Share Posted 29 June, 2009 Cheers Killer..I thought for a minute he had bought the club from the title of the thread... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spank_182 Posted 29 June, 2009 Share Posted 29 June, 2009 Potential future manager?! Great player pre injury. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colinjb Posted 29 June, 2009 Share Posted 29 June, 2009 His long term injury was utterly crucial in our relegation and ensuing downturn. His determination to get back and playing for us is something I will always admire. He had the potential to be an all time club legend, in the end it's a case of what might have been. I doubt we have heard the last of him. All the best to you Michael, a fighter and a gentleman. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CB Fry Posted 29 June, 2009 Share Posted 29 June, 2009 He's a bit like the James Dean of Saints - "died" before he had the chance to get rubbish (imagine if, say, Glenn ****erill had a career ending injury three years into his Saints career) Was brilliant for us in his time, but don't buy into the "loyalty" thing - if has was 100% fit on the day we were relegated, the likelihood would have been he'd have been gone that summer, or during the Jan window, like Niemi. The tragedy, of course, is that we probably wouldn't have gone down with a fit Svennson. Our team with a fit Killer would have been easily good enough to finish a point above Bryan Robson's lowest-survival-total-ever WBA team*. * until Hull. So all in all, a mini legend, and a tragic career cut short. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the saint in winchester Posted 29 June, 2009 Share Posted 29 June, 2009 The Thriller years were obviously the best. Shame the personal issues overshadowed in the end but we should remember the music. A musical genius, no doubt. Await the post mortem but we probably never know the full truth. Respect. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Griffo Posted 29 June, 2009 Share Posted 29 June, 2009 The Thriller years were obviously the best. Shame the personal issues overshadowed in the end but we should remember the music. A musical genius, no doubt. Await the post mortem but we probably never know the full truth. Respect. ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colinjb Posted 29 June, 2009 Share Posted 29 June, 2009 The Thriller years were obviously the best. Shame the personal issues overshadowed in the end but we should remember the music. A musical genius, no doubt. Await the post mortem but we probably never know the full truth. Respect. and Seperated at birth. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
captain sensible Posted 29 June, 2009 Share Posted 29 June, 2009 His rehabilitation was somewhat hampered by the lack of dietary essentials available in the Southampton area ie Scan Pork & Beef Swedish Meatballs,and Fried Egg 'n' Falukorv sandwiches. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
saint_stevo Posted 29 June, 2009 Share Posted 29 June, 2009 How someone can be a legend after playing only 70 odd games is beyond me but..... Good player and hope to see him retained in the coaching staff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CWD Posted 29 June, 2009 Share Posted 29 June, 2009 A true hero, not only was he a great player (and I dont use that word lightly) he's also a top bloke, he always made the effort to speak to the fans when he could. Truly hope he'll stay on, would be a great youth team coach in a few years Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Glasgow_Saint Posted 29 June, 2009 Share Posted 29 June, 2009 There is no 'ctrl' button on Michael Svensson's computer. Michael Svensson is always in control. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bailey Posted 29 June, 2009 Share Posted 29 June, 2009 Killer really is a Saints legend. Arguably formed one of our greatest ever defensive partnerships alongside Lundekvam. He's a role model and I'd love to see him keep his coaching role under the new regime, assuming there is one of course! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
david in sweden Posted 30 June, 2009 Author Share Posted 30 June, 2009 How someone can be a legend after playing only 70 odd games is beyond me but..... Good player and hope to see him retained in the coaching staff of course it depends how you rate... a legend. I can think of a few players who played 200 games and were eminently forgettable. Kevin Keegan was only with Saints for two seasons, but he's still a popular name. Likewise players like Ronnie Ekelund and Marian Pahars were a bit special too , so I put Michaels 88 games in the same category. Short but glorious careers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
South City Si Posted 30 June, 2009 Share Posted 30 June, 2009 Thanks Killer, you were a force to be reckoned with. Great leader and hope you one day become a manager here (once you get some decent practice first! ;-) ) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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