Ola Toivonen

Early career

His father Yrjö was born in Finland and emigrated to Degerfors to work in a factory. Toivonen started his career at Degerfors IF, where he became involved in their campaign in 2005 to avoid relegation from Superettan. He was then bought by Örgryte, and their manager Zoran Lukić. The first, and only, season in Örgryte ended sadly. Lukić was sacked, and Örgryte finished last in Allsvenskan, and thus was relegated to Superettan. In November 2006, he won the "Newcomer of the Year" award at the annual Swedish football awards.

Malmö FF

He soon signed a four-year contract with Malmö FF, in a transfer worth more than $1.1 million. He became Malmö's second most expensive player of all time (only Brazilian international Afonso Alves cost Malmö more money, when the club bought him for approximately $1.3 million in 2004, also from Örgryte). In the 2007 season, Toivonen's first at Malmö, the club finished 9th in Allsvenskan and Toivonen scored three goals. The 2008 season went somewhat better for Malmö, finishing 6th, and this was the absolute breakthrough for Toivonen. In 27 games, he managed to score 14 goals as well as seven assists. This drew the attention of some Premier League and Eredivisie clubs, most notably West Ham United and PSV Eindhoven.

PSV Eindhoven

Toivonen signed a contract with PSV Eindhoven in early 2009. The transfer fee was, according to some source, €3.5 million, and according to other sources €4.5 million. He received a…

On 21 August 2007, he scored a hat trick (including two penalties) for Sweden U21 against Wales U21 in a 4–3 friendly defeat. He was a member of the U-21 national team at the 2009 European Championship in Sweden and scored three times in the competition against Italy U21, Serbia U21, and a superb freekick against England U21 which contributed to a comeback from 3–0 down to 3–3 with Toivonen scoring the second goal. Toivonen's full international debut came on 14 January 2007, when Sweden lost 2–0 away to Venezuela. Leading up to the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa, Sweden played Bosnia and Herzegovina in a friendly on 29 May. Toivonen was included in the starting lineup, as Sweden were without striker Zlatan Ibrahimović. Toivonen scored the opening goal in the 44th minute, giving Sweden a lead at half time. This goal was Toivonen's first at international level. Blackburn Rovers defender Martin Olsson scored a brace in the second half, leading Sweden to a 4–2 win. On 11 August 2010, Toivonen started for the national side in a friendly against Scotland at the Råsunda Stadium in Stockholm. Toivonen grabbed Sweden's third goal in the 55th minute, his second international goal, helping to seal a 3–0 win for the home side. In May 2018, he was named in Sweden's 23 man squad for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia. He scored the first goal of the match in a 2–1 defeat to Germany on 23 June 2018. In August 2018, Toivonen announced his retirement from international football.

Club

International

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

Toivonen is married to Emma and has two children, Selma and Nils.