Ljungberg advised to rest
By Chris Cummings | Tuesday 23rd May
According to the national team doctor, Swedish superstar Freddie Ljungberg would be better off skipping the World Cup group stage in order to fully recover from a troublesome foot injury.
The Arsenal midfielder has been carrying the problem for some time but was a driving force behind the team's UEFA Champions League run.
"He would need to rest for four weeks to completely recover," Dr Anders Valerntin told Swedish television station SVT.
"Even then [at the finals] he may not be without symptoms."
The pacy winger is one of Sweden's most important players. He will be expected to play a big part in their push for the latter stages of the competition, even if that means playing through the pain.
The Arsenal ace is a definite absentee for Sweden's friendly game on Thursday against Finland, and Ljungberg is also likely to miss the final warm-up game against Chile on June 2.
Ljungberg's presence was greatly missed at the 2002 World Cup as he played in only two of his side's four matches, as Sweden only reached the second round.
Sweden have been drawn alongside England in a group that also contains Paraguay and Trinidad & Tobago.
from:
http://home.skysports.com/worldcup/article.asp?hlid=389236&clid=367&lid=2&nav=
