Jesper Karlström #16

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A late bloomer who spent many seasons in the Swedish league before finally making his Serie A debut at the age of 29, after three and a half years at Lech Poznan in Poland. “I try to enjoy it as much as possible and really remind myself that this is my dream that I’m experiencing right now,” he says. What many people did not realise was that he was battling gambling addiction while playing for Djurgården. He had started betting at the age of 15 and it just got worse. “In the end I was so deep in the shit that I couldn’t get myself out,” he admitted in 2021. With help from people at DIF – and his family – he does not gamble any longer. Karlström was important in Sweden qualifying for this year’s World Cup, but four years ago things were very different after conceding a penalty in the play-off against Poland. After he was abused online afterwards, the Swedish FA reported it to the police.

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