It's my last chance. I'm not going to play any more World Cups”. The historic captain of the Swedish team Caroline Seger (Helsingborg, 1985) tries to savor every minute that she lives in Australia. When the lights go out, she will never wear the armband or defend the Sweden jersey again. That is why she does not want Spain to end her dreams tomorrow (10 a.m., La 1) and send them home.
Sara Caroline Seger is the last survivor of the handful of legends that started the World Cup on July 19. Marta Vieira (Brazil), Christine Sinclair (Canada), Megan Rapinoe (United States)... One by one, all the stars said goodbye to the tournament prematurely. A bitter and unfair end for the first references of the soccer players who are today in the center of all the spotlights, like Alexia Putellas. All but one. Seger is still standing.
With more than 200 caps behind her, she is the European footballer who has defended the colors of her team the most times and the only one in the Swedish team –female or male– to have played five different World Cups. A milestone that is eclipsed by the Brazilian Formiga, who came to play seven World Cups before retiring at the end of last year.
The one in Australia and New Zealand is the fourteenth major tournament for the Swedish captain. She has five European Cups, five World Cups and four Olympic Games in which she has never managed to climb to the top of the podium. That's why her goal in her last dance can only be one: "Achieve the only medal I'm missing." She came close at the Tokyo Games in 2021, but against Canada she missed the penalty that would have given Sweden gold. A pitch that she still sees in her dreams: “I've been through a lot in my career, but never through something so hard mentally. I don't think she can ever fully leave him behind, she will always be there." It could have been the crowning moment of her career, but she didn't let this ordeal fester, and months later Sweden won the Algarve Cup thanks to not one, but two penalties taken by her captain.
Nor has he given up this last year in which he has had to fight against the clock to overcome an ordeal of injuries. A heel operation, muscular problems and several relapses that were about to leave her off Gerhardsson's list. She made her debut against South Africa coming off the bench in the last ten minutes of the game, but since the round of 16 she has suffered from calf discomfort that keeps her training on the sidelines. “I've been through this all year. I have stood up every time, and I will continue to do so, ”Seger responded to the press. From Sweden they recognize that she is touched, but they do not want to give clues before facing Spain for a place in the grand final.
