Isak headlines Sweden’s World Cup squad, Bardghji and Kulusevski absent

Alexander Isak has been included in Sweden’s World Cup squad after recovering from a fractured leg, although Barcelona’s Roony Bardghji has been surprisingly unnoticed.

Isak was out for round 4 months after injuring his fibula simply earlier than Christmas, that means he missed Sweden’s victories over Ukraine and Poland in March’s play-offs.

In his absence, Viktor Gyokeres led the road and scored a hat-trick towards Ukraine within the semi-finals, earlier than offering the late winner in a 3-2 closing victory over Poland.

Isak, who has 16 objectives in 56 senior caps for his nation, then missed Liverpool’s Premier League defeat to Manchester United earlier this month as a consequence of a minor groin problem, however Sweden are hopeful he shall be absolutely match for his or her first World Cup marketing campaign since 2018.

He is among the largest names in Graham Potter’s 26-man celebration, alongside Arsenal striker Gyokeres, who has 9 objectives in his final 13 Premier League appearances.

However the former Chelsea boss has neglected Bardghji, regardless of the 20-year-old making 26 appearances for Barcelona in all competitions this season (9 begins) and serving to them retain the LaLiga title.

Dejan Kulusevski is one other big-name absentee, although the Tottenham winger was not anticipated to make the minimize after lacking your complete 2025-26 season with a severe knee harm.

The WC squad 2026 is right here! #FIFAWorldCup pic.twitter.com/wUEkSbETF2

— Swedish Soccer (@svenskfotboll) Could 12, 2026

Potter mentioned: “We’ve got turned each stone and investigated the chances, and I’ve fastidiously thought-about the state of affairs earlier than making this choice, which was very robust.

“I’ve chosen a gaggle that may stand robust collectively and wherein the gamers get the perfect out of one another. A match is one thing completely different from an strange gathering.

“We’re confronted with different challenges over time that we have to deal with collectively, and we construct that capability with the right combination of gamers, the place everybody issues.”

Sweden will face Norway and Greece in pre-tournament friendlies earlier than taking over Tunisia of their opening Group F match on June 14, in Guadeloupe.

They then face the Netherlands six days later, in Houston, earlier than assembly Japan in Arlington, Texas on June 25.

Sweden squad: Kristoffer Nordfeldt (AIK), Viktor Johansson (Stoke Metropolis), Jacob Widell Zetterstrom (Derby County); Daniel Svensson (Borussia Dortmund), Victor Lindelof (Aston Villa), Isak Hien (Atalanta), Carl Starfelt (Celta Vigo), Elliot Stroud (Mjallby AIF), Gustaf Lagerbielke (Braga), Gabriel Gudmundsson (Leeds United), Emil Holm (Juventus), Hjalmar Ekdal (Burnley), Erik Smith (St. Pauli); Taha Ali (Malmo FF), Yasin Ayari (Brighton), Lucas Bergvall (Tottenham), Anthony Elanga (Newcastle United), Viktor Gyokeres (Arsenal), Jesper Karlstrom (Udinese), Gustaf Nilsson (Membership Brugge), Benjamin Nygren (Celtic), Mattias Svanberg (Wolfsburg), Besfort Zeneli (Union Saint-Gilloise), Alexander Isak (Liverpool), Alexander Bernhardsson (Holstein Kiel), Ken Sema (Pafos).