A brutal burn! Potter mocks Man City's scandal as his Sweden squad crumbles

Graham Potter has had to improvise before, but nothing quite like this. With a visit to Bosnia on the cards, the Sweden coach found a truly unique way to laugh through the crisis.

Details: Sweden have lost 11 players in a single international window. Taha Ali, Gustaf Nilsson and Mattias Svanberg withdrew before the camp, Alexander Isak left with a thigh problem, Emil Holm and Hjalmar Ekdal followed, and then, after the Poland match, a sudden viral infection knocked out five more squad members. Asked about the carnage ahead of Friday's Nations League clash in Zenica, Potter delivered a punchline heard around the football world: “In terms of how many withdrawals, I think we've had a similar number to Man City's charges”.

• Also read: Sweden have won both matches and scored five goals: prediction for Bosnia and Herzegovina - Sweden

The joke landed because the reference is brutally fresh: City were found guilty last week on 114 of the 115 charges brought by the Premier League, and sanctions, from a massive points deduction to possible expulsion, are yet to come. But Potter was careful not to turn a gag into a grenade, immediately turning serious: “It's not good for football or the English league. It's sad actually. You just have to focus on the players we have here”. Swedish football has been left stunned by the scale of the medical crisis. Former striker Johan Elmander told Radiosporten he had never witnessed anything like it, and Magnus Eriksson agreed: “I have never seen an injury toll like this”. Yet the numbers on the pitch still look healthy: Sweden top Group B4 with six points from two wins, Viktor Gyökeres has scored in both games, and Friday's hosts Bosnia have gone unbeaten in their last four. For context, Potter has been nothing short of a rescue act for Swedish football: appointed in October 2025 when the team sat bottom of its World Cup qualifying group, he dragged Blagult through the playoffs and to the tournament itself. Losing a third of a squad would break most projects; so far, his has only made better jokes.

It's worth noting that Friday's game in Zenica carries extra poignancy for the hosts: veteran captain Edin Dzeko has announced it will be his final match in international football. Even with eleven players down, Potter's patched up Swedes will be trying to ruin a farewell party.

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