H | Player Pics | A-Z of Players
Personal
Fullname: Magnus Carl Hedman
aka: Magnus Hedman
Height: 6.03 ft
Weight: 14st
Born: 19 Mar 1973
Birthplace: Huddinge, Sweden
Signed: 1 Aug 2002 (£1.5m from Coventry)
Left: 21 July 2005
Position: Goalkeeper
Debut: Celtic 5-0 Dundee Utd, League, 16 Aug 2003
Internationals: Sweden
International Caps: 58 caps
Biog
“The Celtic fans are the best in the world in my opinion.”
Magnus Hedman
Swedish international goalkeeper Magnus Hedman was the man many Hoops fans hoped would finally bring a bit of quality to the Bhoys No1 shirt when he arrived at Parkhead for £1 million from Coventry in 2002.
Rab Douglas was the goalkeeper for Celtic at the time, and as much as he was an honest and hard working goalkeeper, he simply wasn’t cut out for consistent performances at the highest level in Europe (albeit he did have some great performances in Europe along the way). Some even recklessly try to pin blame on Douglas for the Seville defeat, which is nonsense. In any case, there was room for a new goalkeeper to test and challenge Douglas for the no.1 jersey.
Magnus Hedman was hoped to fill the void that had been Celtic’s general inability to get a great goalkeeper. To our disappointment, Magnus Hedman sadly joined the list of unsuccessful Celtic goalkeepers (maybe it was a curse?).
At the start, with fellow Swedes Henrik Larsson and Johan Mjallby adored by the Celtic faithful, aspirations were high that Magnus Hedman would join his compatriots in the affection of the support. As a keeper in England and at international level (with Sweden) he had shown himself to be a solid and seemingly commanding stopper. Just the sort of guardian for the goals the Bhoys had been looking for. Add in that his wife was a glamorous Swedish pop star, they were definitely a welcome couple (well she was definitely!).
Joking aside, a fresh new goalkeeper was needed for the squad.
With Rab Douglas in less than convincing form, Magnus Hedman was expected to make the starting spot his own but the former Sky Blue was himself less than impressive and notable blunders – including a costly mistake in a Champions League tie at Bayern Munich – saw the Swede make only limited first team appearances. The performance in Munich, sealed his fate for most of the support, with a notable flapping and indecision in a one-on-one situation leading to the knives being brought out for him. Appeared in his games to be poor with high balls, although he wasn’t a bad shot stopper.
He had a very good game in the 3-1 win over Anderlecht, saving a penalty and making some good saves. So that was a high mark but there was not enough of these performances to provide the confidence in him for the support and mangement.
He ended his time with a reputation for being error prone and bottling it on the big occasion. Magnus Hedman was out of the first team picture by 2004 and a loan spell in Italy at Ancona followed. With David Marshall coming onto the scene in 2004, Magnus Hedman seemed to but pushed down further down the queue for a first team slot. Hedman stated that part of the problem was a throat problem that occurred that stopped his appearances after 2003.
In fairness to Magnus Hedman, Celtic conceded not too heavily during his time, admittedly due to the very strong defence. He wasn’t necessarily a poor keeper, but Celtic were at a high at the time, with Seville in the past season raising expectations, and the standards expected were high benchmarks. He couldn’t match them, and wasn’t given the opportunity to bed in and learn from errors.
After 26 first team appearances at Parkhead, Magnus Hedman was released from his contract at the start of season 2005/06. He would later move to Chelsea, being signed as cover during a goalkeeping injury crisis at the London club. But he would not make any senior appearances with them and in truth Magnus Hedman’s career was already all but over following his departure from Parkhead. Some good opportunities came afterwards but never as a first pick.
Post-Celtic
Life took a difficult turn, and he revealed years later on his suicide torment after blowing a reported £5m on drugs & ladies (out of respect the details will be left for elsewhere more appropriate away from this site). He moved onto TV commentary but lost his role there. He had burned all his earnings and he needed help.
Difficult times, but we didn’t wish any ill on him and hoped that he could turn his life around for his family. He did so with a lot of personal effort, and it is good to reflect upon for anyone else who will ever experience any similar hardship.
He moved onto become a football agent and then moved into mental health coaching.
We wish him the best.
Playing Career
| APPEARANCES | LEAGUE | SCOTTISH CUP | LEAGUE CUP | EUROPE | TOTAL |
| 2002-03 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 10 |
| Shut-outs | 5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 7 |
| 2003-04 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 19 |
| Shut-outs | 8 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 11 |
| 2004-05 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 7 |
| Shut-outs | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Total | 26 | 1 | 1 | 8 | 36 |
| Shut-outs | 16 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 21 |
| Club | From | To | Fee | League | Scottish Cup | League cup | Other | ||||
| Ancona | 29/01/2004 | 31/05/2004 | Loan | No appearance data available | |||||||
| Celtic | 01/08/2002 | 21/07/2005 | £1,500,000 | 26 (0) | 0 | 1 (0) | 0 | 1 (0) | 0 | 9 (0) | 0 |
| Coventry | 07/07/1997 | 01/08/2002 | Free | 134 (0) | 0 | 11 (0) | 0 | 6 (0) | 0 | 0 (0) | 0 |
| Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goal | ||||
Honours with Celtic
Pictures
Articles
Magnus Hedman, ex-Celtic goalie, on how drugs ruined relationship with his son
Published: 14:22 Monday 29 October 2018
https://www.scotsman.com/sport/football/teams/celtic/magnus-hedman-ex-celtic-goalie-on-how-drugs-ruined-relationship-with-his-son-1-4821324
Ex-Celtic star Magnus Hedman has revealed how drug addiction wrecked his relationship with his son.
The Swedish international keeper ended a three-season Hoops spell in 2005 following his Premier League stint with Coventry City.
Hedman, 45, also had a brief stay with Chelsea, and won 58 national caps between 1994 and 2004.
The Stockholm-born ace previously confessed to spending fortunes on amphetamines.
He has now appeared on a Swedish TV show, presented by his son Lancelot, in which he owns up to being a bad father.
Hedman said: “I have had several difficult periods. When I retired from football I felt very bad as a human being.
“Then I began abusing drugs. It went on for four years, there was a lot about me in the media, and it was hard for Lancelot.
“Part of his tough teenage period came from me. It made him grow up early, taking extra responsibility.
“All I can do now is be the best dad possible, and give him all the love I can.
“I wasn’t born with a silver spoon in my mouth, and didn’t have things easy.
“It is not so hard for me now to talk about my addiction, and that is proof of my recovery.
“I spend an hour to two on my rehab every day. It hurts me to think back on the past. But I can repay Lance by having a healthier relationship with him.
“Things are still difficult today. It is not good to disappoint one’s children.”
Magnus Hedman’s career change: “Being able to look people in the eye”
https://www-aftonbladet-se.translate.goog/sportbladet/fotboll/a/zEydBq/magnus-hedman-byter-karriar-ska-bli-mental-radgivare?_x_tr_sl=auto&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=en-US&_x_tr_pto=wapp
Leaving the agent industry: “Too much of the wild west”
Michael Wagner
Published 2023-08-30
Former national team star and WC bronze medalist Magnus Hedman, 50, is stepping down as player agent. He refers to that part of the industry as the “Wild West”.
Instead, he invests full time in mental coaching.
– I’m needed there. Players take anti-depressants and the mental illness is a big problem, says Hedman.
After a ten-year hiatus from football-related assignments, Magnus Hedman entered the agency business two years ago.
– I will be an agent who is there for the players all the time, regardless of whether things are going well or badly for them, he said then. He has helped several players over the two years, but is now stepping down as an agent.
There are good agents, but…
– I don’t want to talk bad about that whole part of the industry. There are good agents and sports managers, but it’s too much of a wild west right now. I want to have morality in what I do and to be able to look people in the eye. There are too many dirty tricks and too many fortune seekers.
– I was part of a transfer for a player. We had a team meeting where all the agents who represented any part of the transition were present. There were 13 scattered around the world. It’s crazy and chaos.
Hedman will continue to act as an advisor for Gustav Engvall , IFK Värnamo, but spend more of his time on assignments as a mental advisor where he helps and has previously helped Isak Hien, Victor Edvardsen and Joel Asoro among others .
Photo: Staffan Claesson/TT
– I work both with players and high-performing people from the business world. Not everyone feels bad, but I know I can contribute to making them perform and feel even better, says Hedman.
– A larger proportion of soccer players at a high level feel worse mentally today than when I played.
How do you know that?
– I talk to many, and too many conversations from clubs and players. Players take anti-depressants and the mental illness is greater, we know that. We had other problems in my time.
Person=performance
Why has it become so now?
– Social media and increased exposure are part of it. On social media, the confirmation comes immediately, or the adamant criticism. The players completely connect their person to their own performance. Self-esteem plummets. The requirement becomes perfectionism. With perfectionism, you are easily driven by fear, the fear of making mistakes becomes greater than the will to succeed.
– This combined with the fact that everything goes so quickly. The players must change to a better environment, new club and bigger money as soon as possible, immediately when things are going well. Quite often cheered on by an agent. It builds an inner stress and takes away a large part of the person’s patience, which easily leads to dissatisfaction if it doesn’t turn out the way the player wants right away.
Photo: Wixtröm Jimmy
Doesn’t that sound like a lucrative career change to you?
– If I wanted to make money, I would continue investing as an agent, of course. But I don’t enjoy it and this second part I really feel for. After all, I have struggled with my own problems before.
Completed training since 2005
Magnus Hedman was the third goalkeeper when Sweden won bronze at the World Cup in the USA in 1994, in 2000 he won the Golden Ball and he has played for clubs such as Chelsea, Coventry, Celtic and AIK.
There are quite a few sports psychology advisors already, right?
– I do not intend to review others. Just because I’ve played at the highest level before doesn’t automatically make me a good mental coach, but it’s an advantage. I really understand what the players are going through. The need for this type of help and advice is increasing all the time.
– I have studied since 2005 and have taken 23 courses in behavioral science and psychology. I know what I’m talking about, I know that this is where I can make a real difference for the players and also the people, says Magnus Hedman.