Johnny Ekström

IFK Göteborg

A product of the IFK Göteborg youth academy, Ekström was promoted to the first team in 1983 before making his Allsvenskan debut during the 1984 season. He quickly earned the nicknames "Kallebäcks-Expressen" (the express train from Kallebäck) and "Johnny Bråttom" (Johnny-in-a-hurry) due to his speed on the football pitch. His most successful season with Göteborg came in 1986, when he was the 1986 Allsvenskan top scorer and helped the club reach the semi-finals of the 1985–86 European Cup before being eliminated by FC Barcelona. He also played in the first half of the 1986–87 UEFA Cup which IFK Göteborg ended up winning after Ekström's departure.

Empoli

Ekström was the most expensive Swedish transfer of all time when he signed for Empoli during the 1986–87 Serie A season. At Empoli, he became a popular and respected player and acquired the nickname 'Il Ciclone' (the cyclone) due to the exceptional speed he displayed when charging ahead with the ball in his possession, which was his most notable quality.

Bayern Munich

In 1988 Ekström signed for the German Bundesliga club FC Bayern Munich, and helped them win the 1988–89 Bundesliga title and reach the semi-finals of the 1988–89 UEFA Cup before being eliminated by Napoli.

Cannes

He signed with AS Cannes in Ligue 1 in 1989 and played alongside a young Zinedine Zidane before leaving the club in 1991.

Return to IFK Göteborg

Ekström returned to Swedish football and IFK…

Youth

Ekström played 12 games for the Sweden U21 team and was a part of the Sweden U21 squad that reached the quarterfinals of the 1986 UEFA European Under-21 Championship before being eliminated by Italy.

Senior

Ekström made his full international debut in a friendly game against Greece on 1 May 1986, playing for 71 minutes alongside Dan Corneliusson at forward before being replaced by Lasse Larsson in a 0–0 draw. He scored his first international goal in a 3–1 friendly win against Finland on 6 August 1986.

UEFA Euro 1988 qualifying

Ekström made his competitive international debut for Sweden on 24 September 1986 in a UEFA Euro 1988 qualifying game against Switzerland, which Sweden won 2–0 after two goals by Ekström. He went on to score another four goals in the same qualifying campaign, making him the joint-third best goalscorer in the UEFA Euro 1988 qualifiers at six goals together with Alessandra Altobelli but behind John Bosman and Nico Claesen. Despite Ekström's goals, Sweden did not manage to qualify for Euro 1988.

1990 FIFA World Cup

Ekström scored two goals during the 1990 FIFA World Cup qualifying campaign to help Sweden qualify for its first World Cup since 1978. While at the 1990 World Cup, he appeared in the second group stage game against Scotland, replacing Stefan Pettersson in the 63rd minute in a 1–2 loss. He started in the third group stage game against Costa Rica, scoring the first goal in a third consecutive 1–2…

International

Scores and results list Sweden's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Ekström goal.

IFK Göteborg

Allsvenskan: 1984, 1991, 1993 Svenska Cupen: 1991 UEFA Cup: 1986–87 Bayern München

Bundesliga: 1988–89 Individual

Allsvenskan top scorer: 1986 Stor Grabb: 1988 Årets ärkeängel: 1992