Tobias Mikaelsson

Tobias Lars Mikaelsson (born 17 November 1988) is a Swedish footballer.

Tobias Mikaelsson
Mikaelsson during his time with Aston Villa
Personal information
Full nameTobias Lars Mikaelsson[1]
Date of birth (1988-11-17) 17 November 1988 (age 35)[1]
Place of birthJörlanda, Sweden[2]
Height6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)[3]
Position(s)Forward
Youth career
Vallens IF
2003–2005Ljungskile
2005–2007Aston Villa
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps(Gls)
2007–2009Aston Villa0(0)
2007Ljungskile (loan)5(1)
2008Port Vale (loan)6(0)
2009–2011Trollhättan47(6)
2011–2012Ljungskile47(7)
2013–2018Oddevold98(21)
2018–2020Stenungsunds
2020–2022Kongahälla
2022–2023Svenshögens
2024–Vallens IF
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 14 May 2018


He started his professional career with Aston Villa in England in 2007. After loan spells with Ljungskile and Port Vale, he signed with Swedish side Trollhättan in 2009. Two years later, he joined Ljungskile. He joined Oddevold in February 2013 before signing with Stenungsunds in January 2018. He joined Kongahälla in 2020 and Svenshögens in 2022.

Career

Aston Villa

Mikaelsson signed for Aston Villa in August 2005 from Swedish Superettan side, Ljungskile – the team he also supports. He never played a game for the Villa senior team. Still, he made appearances at the youth level and for the Reserves, where he had a prolific goalscoring record. Mikaelsson was thought to have a very bright future ahead of him, some pundits had previously tipped him to become a star while he was at youth level, and follow the footsteps of his boyhood idols Zlatan Ibrahimović and Henrik Larsson. Mikaelsson joined his old club Ljungskile on loan on 15 March 2007 to gain first-team experience, and he scored one goal and provided five assists in the stint. On 18 September 2007, he scored his first hat-trick for Villa Reserves – in a 4–1 victory against Derby County. In January 2008, Mikaelsson joined Port Vale on a one-month loan deal, joining up with team-mate Chris Herd.[4] He played six games for the League One club, Vale lost four and drew two games. After Mikaelsson returned to Villa Park following an ankle injury,[5] Vale were relegated. In July 2008, Mikaelsson was rewarded with a one-year contract extension, keeping him at the club until the summer of 2009. He had a five-day trial with BK Häcken in January 2009.[2] In April 2009, he had an unsuccessful trial at League One Hartlepool United following release from Aston Villa.

Sweden

Mikaelsson returned home to Sweden and signed for Trollhättan in July 2009. In his first season in the Superettan, Mikaelsson scored a single goal in 18 appearances for Trollhättan.[6] During the 2010 season, Mikaelsson managed to score 5 goals in 29 appearances for the club,[6] but was unable to help them avoid relegation. Mikaelsson opted to remain in the Superettan and transferred back to Ljungskile in March 2011.[6] LSK finished in eighth place in 2011 and then in fifth place in 2012.

In February 2013, Mikaelsson signed for Division 1 Södra club IK Oddevold.[7] The club finished second in 2013, but were beaten by Varbergs BoIS in the qualification play-offs.[8] They finished in fifth place in 2014, fourth in 2015, and seventh in 2016. He scored two goals in 11 appearances during the 2017 season as the club finished in ninth place. In January 2018, Mikaelsson dropped down a level to sign a two-year contract with Division 2 side Stenungsunds.[9] The "Red Brothers" ended the 2018 season fifth in the Norra Götaland region. He signed with Division 4 side Kongahälla in 2020.[10] He joined Svenshögens in 2022.[11]

Style of play

Mikaelsson said: "I like to think I'm an intelligent type of player with decent technique and decent pace."[4] He is noted for his tall, powerful physique and sound technical ability.

Career statistics

As of 14 May 2018.
ClubSeasonDivisionLeagueFA CupLeague CupOtherTotal
AppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Aston Villa2006–07[12]Premier League0000000000
2007–08[13]Premier League0000000000
2008–09[14]Premier League0000000000
Total0000000000
Ljungskile (loan)2007Superettan5100000051
Port Vale (loan)2007–08[13]League One6000000060
Trollhättan2009[15]Superettan181000000181
2010[15]Superettan295210000316
Total476210000497
Ljungskile2011[15]Superettan232100000242
2012[15]Superettan245110000256
Total477210000498
IK Oddevold2013[15]Division 1 Södra25700002[a]0277
2014[15]Division 1 Södra244000000244
2015[15]Division 1 Södra176000000176
2016[15]Division 1 Södra223000000223
2017[15]Division 1 Södra101110000112
Total982110002010121
Career total[b]2033552002021037

References