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Glenn Hysen (born Gothenburg, Sweden, October 30 1959) was an outstanding defender who played for leading Dutch, Italian and English clubs and won 63 caps for Sweden.
Hysen (pron. Huss-ain) started his career with IFK Gothenburg and quickly established himself as a tough and composed defender. He was Sweden's Footballer Of The Year in 1983 and his form earned him his first international caps and a move to PSV Eindhoven in Holland.
He then moved to Fiorentina and earned continental plaudits with his displays against England in two World Cup matches during the qualifying campaign for the forthcoming 1990 tournament. As a result, English clubs became interested in him. He became Sweden's Footballer Of The Year again in 1988, with Swedish rules not barring their countrymen from receiving the award even if playing in a different nation.
Hysen seemed set to sign for Manchester United in the summer of 1989 but then Liverpool stepped in and, as the club with a better success record at that stage, Hysen chose to move to Anfield.
He settled in immediately, scoring his first Liverpool goal in their club record 9-0 mauling of Crystal Palace in late 1989. Alongside veteran club captain Alan Hansen and, in Hansen's injury-enforced absence, the young defender Gary Ablett, Hysen was a major part of Liverpool's success in the League championship of 1990. He later captained Sweden in a disappointing World Cup campaign in Italy, when they lost all three of their first round matches and went home surprisingly early.
It went slightly downhill for Hysen thereafter, with Hansen out with a long-term injury (which led to his retirement), as the big Swede started to struggle with the pace of the English game. Manager Kenny Dalglish's resignation heralded the beginning of Hysen's end, with new manager Graeme Souness less keen to keep him. He returned to Sweden in 1992.
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