Latest news with #AxelSjoberg
RTÉ News
03-05-2025
- Sport
- RTÉ News
Stephen Kenny tells St Pat's players to 'go and play like league leaders now'
A satisfied Stephen Kenny challenged his side to "go and play like league leaders" after they combined first-half verve with second-half grit to go top of the SSE Airtricity League Premier Division. The Saints were 2-0 up at half-time at home to Galway on Friday night but lost Axel Sjoberg to a second yellow card in the 69th minute and had to close out a victory with 10 men that lifted them above Drogheda United. "I felt it was contrasting halves in that we had to show two sides of the team's character," the former Ireland boss told RTÉ Sport. "Brilliant football first half, thought we dominated, had terrific sequences of play and scored two great goals. "Admittedly Galway missed a great chance just before we scored our first one but we thoroughly deserved a two-nil lead. I felt at half-time we were well on top and had dominated the ball. The two players that scored, Kian Leavy and Zack Elbouzedi, they both could have done with a goal and they both got a goal. Brilliant goals and delighted for them. "Galway are a very good team. They were putting us under pressure to start the second half but I thought the sending off for Axel Sjoberg seemed quite harsh, to say the least, but it is what it is. "And with 10 men, then we had to show a resolute side. We had to show our determination as a group and had to defend. "Galway had some chances and [goalkeeper] Joe Anang did well for us. Overall, I thought we deserved to win." Kenny accepted that Aidan Keena's return from a hamstring injury might have been "premature" but felt his side had needed more of a creative spark after their late capitulation at Dalymount Park last week. "We were so disappointed last week, it was a real kick in the teeth for us to concede two late goals against Bohemians," he said. "You don't get over that easy. So we had to get that out of our system and get a win tonight. Galway had been top of the league, so that puts us up there for the moment. "And we've got to go and play like league leaders now against Derry on Monday. "It's a quick turnaround and then we've got to get back for Tolka Park, which will be an epic game against Shelbourne on Friday. "They are tough games but there's nothing easy in life and you have to earn everything you get." Galway manager John Caulfield rued his side's failure to get the first goal that would have put the hosts under pressure in the second period but, just over a third of the way through the season, the Tribesmen are just two points off the top of the table. "On another night we might have scored a goal or two in the second half," he said. "We were well on top and playing really well. "We felt if we got a goal back it would make it an interesting game, but we couldn't and we move on. "We did well last year, but we feel that we need to do better this year and kick on. There is a difference between competing and challenging for a title every week. "If we are in with a chance of Europe at the end of the season, so be it, but this league is going to right down to the wire at both ends."
The Irish Sun
02-05-2025
- Sport
- The Irish Sun
Quick-fire goals from Kian Leavy and Zach Elbouzedi boost St Pat's title hopes as Stephen Kenny's men beat Galway Utd
ST PAT'S got their title hopes rolling again despite losing an Axel. Axel Sjoberg was sent off for two fouls on Bobby Burns in a second half in which they were on the back foot for the majority. 2 St Patrick's Athletic beat Galway Utd Credit: David Fitzgerald/Sportsfile 2 Pat's lost Axel Sjoberg to a red card Credit: David Fitzgerald/Sportsfile But two goals in six first-half minutes from Kian Leavy and Zach Elbouzedi had put them in control and, unlike a week earlier, they were able to withstand a fightback from their opponents. The fiery contest saw both managers Galway assistant Ollie Horgan, booked, as well as the eight yellow cards issued to players, two of them to Sjoberg. St Pat's were boosted by the return of top scorer Aidan Keena from a hamstring injury after a seven-week lay-off as they chased their first home win since then, having been held by both Shelbourne and But the more painful Dublin derby had come a week previously when they led 1-0 against Bohemians going into the final minute at Dalymount Park. Read More on League of Ireland That was, according to Kenny, that had happened to him in a league match, although he did allude to Ireland manager. His mood had not lifted by the time he got around to penning his programme notes in which he wrote 'The pain of that resonates and infiltrates your system and leaves you in a cave where light doesn't exist.' The early stages mainly featured players trying their luck from distance to no great effect. Moses Dyer fired straight into the hands of Joseph Anang after being teed up by Garry Buckley and Patrick Hickey when Stephen Walsh was free. Most read in Football At the other end, Keena sent an effort well wide whilst Brendan Clarke comfortably dealt with Jamie Lennon's attempt and, later, Leavy cut in and fired over. St Pat's were the better team and it opened up for them when Joe Redmond got away from Buckley. He played a weighted pass in towards the near post but Rob Slevin got there ahead of Keena. Travis Kelce looks unrecognizable as NFL legend spotted in NYC photoshoot near Taylor Swift's apartment Mason Melia was also off-target with a header after he climbed above Jeannot Esua but, for all that, Galway should have taken the lead on the half-hour mark. Esua got to the byline and pulled the ball back with Dyer who appeared to have a whole goal to aim for. There was a premature scream of celebration from the visitors' bench as Dyer did not connect properly with the ball which allowed Anang to react and gather. St Pat's made the most of the let-off as, instead of falling behind, they were ahead within three minutes. Leavy played a neat one-two with Keena who managed to get the ball back to him despite losing his footing. The ex-Shelbourne player was pushed wide but he still managed to get his shot on target which Clarke got a foot too but was unable to keep it out. Before the game restarted, Galway made a change with Sean Kerrigan sent on in place of Walsh but it did not stem the tide and they were 2-0 down by the break. In the 39th minute, Melia played in Elbouzedi who let fly. His shot was on target but it took a deflection off Slevin which made it impossible for Clarke to keep out. SECOND WIND Whatever Caulfield said at half-time prompted a big response from Galway who had a number of good opportunities shortly after the restart. Dyer skipped past Sean Hoare and Lennon with the midfielder resorting to pulling him down at the expense of a free-kick and a yellow card. Cian Byrne almost exacted more punishment from the set-piece with his shot rattling the crossbar. Shortly afterwards, Hickey played in Dyer but, again, the New Zealand international lacked the ruthlessness he had shown in previous games and the danger passed. Caulfield and his assistant Horgan were both booked in the aftermath of a high and late challenge by Sjoberg - who himself was cautioned - on Bobby Burns. The game then threatened to boil over as David Hurley went in hard on Forrester who then had words with Burns which prompted him to shove the St Pat's midfielder in the chest which was not seen by referee Rob Harvey. And, in the 70th minute, Sjoberg was dismissed when he received a second yellow after pulling back Burns. That prompted a reshuffle with defender Ryan McLaughlin brought on for Elbouzedi with Kenny having already introduced pacey winger Simon Power for the tiring Keena. St Pat's were, not unexpectedly, under the cosh with Slevin curling a shot narrowly wide from the edge of the box before Dyer headed over from a corner with Anang doing well to deny David Hurley but they held on. SUN STAR MAN: Kian Leavy (St Pat's) ST PAT'S: Anang 8; Sjoberg 5, Redmond 7, Hoare 7, Kazeem 6 (Turner 79, 4); Elbouzedi 7 (McLaughlin 70, 6), Forrester 7, Lennon 7, Leavy 8; Melia 7 (Carty 79, 4), Keena 7 (Power 55, 5). GALWAY UNITED: Clarke 6; Buckley 6 (Tollett 86, 4), Brouder 6, Slevin 6; Esua 6, Byrne 7 (McCormack 90, 3), Hurley 7, Burns 6; Hickey 6; Walsh 6 (Kerrigan 33, 5 (Wilson 90, 3)), Dyer 6. REFEREE: R Harvey (Dublin) 6
Irish Daily Mirror
01-05-2025
- Sport
- Irish Daily Mirror
‘I got pissed off easily' - St Patrick's Athletic star on adapting to Irish move
St Patrick's Athletic defender Axel Sjoberg has revealed the biggest challenges of his move to Ireland so far - both on and off the pitch. It's no surprise that the Swede has found it difficult to cope with back-to-back hamstring injuries. The first, almost three months after his arrival in March 2023, sidelined him for four months, and when he suffered a recurrence on his comeback it ended his season and kept him out of that year's FAI Cup final. But off the pitch there were some teething issues too, as he struggled to understand the Irish sense of humour. 'I would say the people,' replied the former Hammarby prospect, when asked about the biggest culture shock of his first move abroad. 'The people are very outgoing, nice people, and welcoming people. In Sweden it's a little bit more closed. 'In the same way at the beginning I didn't really understand all of the banter they were doing. Some of the things were like, I got pissed (off) easily, but it was good, now I understand it. 'It was just some of the words, I didn't really understand. They made fun of my accent or whatever.' Click this link or scan the QR code to receive the latest League of Ireland news and top stories from the Irish Mirror. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice. Two years in and Sjoberg can now see the funny side - but he doesn't dare expose his friends and family back at home to the kind of jokes he hears here. 'I understand it more. Over here, if you are going to do a joke, you can say pretty much whatever you want. But in Sweden you can't really say certain stuff. No, no. It doesn't work there,' he said. Reflecting on his injury woes, Sjoberg said his time on the sidelines just made him more determined to make his move to Pat's work. 'I was more like I don't want to go home. I wanted to prove I was able to play in the League and prove that I am not only injured,' he said. 'So I was not really looking to go home. I just wanted to prove I was not only injured.' Sjoberg described his move to Ireland as a 'fresh start' after spells in his home country with IK Frej, Hammarby and BK Olympic. 'I was in a place back home in Sweden where I was a little bit stuck. I was more or less thinking 'Okay, let's go, I've nothing to lose',' he said. 'I think I wanted to take a move from the club I was playing in, but I also wanted a fresh start somewhere, to start from the beginning, and start to compete. 'Obviously, to go abroad is always a nice experience. 'I actually don't know (how the move came about). I had a phone call with my agent and we were in a discussion back and forth. 'Then I was like, I have nothing to lose, let's try it. I had never heard about the league before or anything like that. So I thought, let's try it.' Sjoberg is aiming to help Pat's return to winning ways tonight when they take on second-placed Galway United. Just one point separates the two teams, in a bottleneck of a Premier Division table. Last week Pat's were 1-0 up away to Bohemians, only to concede twice in injury-time - so Stephen Kenny's men are eager to avoid a repeat over a busy seven-day period when they face Galway at home, before trips to Derry on Monday and Shelbourne next Friday. 'It's still really annoying, to be fair,' said Sjoberg of the Bohs defeat. 'Such a big game and it was just a big disappointment. 'I think we should have won that game. It's football, unfortunately we lost. We just need to bounce back from the loss and keep going, go on a winning streak again. 'We've been talking and discussing things that went wrong and what we can improve, what we are doing well and what we need to keep doing. 'We just need to do what we've been training on and talking about.'
