Graham Potter on the responsibilities of journalists: listen to what is being said

Because such usually always come for confederation captains in the major media sports.

Hockey's Rikard Grönberg argued with SVT's Marie Lehmann live. The successor Sam Hallam ran the same style with Viaplay's Erik Granqvist a few years later.

In football, Bojan Djordjic tested the top cover on Janne Andersson when he fed questions about Jesper Karlsson (anyone who remembers him?) and the Andersson mood only got worse with each gathering.

Lars Lagerbäck's last year of the relationship with the media in the role of Swedish national team captain can best be described as an as long as a bored sigh, and in the end Erik Hamrén could not be asked what time it was without it derailing.

So when Graham Potter during Monday's press conference ahead of the men's national team's four Nations League matches (the first at home against Romania on Friday) in soccer thought that the atmosphere in the meeting with the media was mostly characterized by negative questions, I only felt at first:

Not you either. Not already.

But it was when Potter was then asked if he could elaborate on what he meant by journalists' responsibilities that it became interesting and exciting.

Because he said nothing about us in the media having a responsibility to help Swedish football - as leaders often seem to think.

He said nothing about us in the media being part of the national football team's supportership - as other confederation captains have said.

Then he landed on something as simple as listening to what was being said.

When Graham Potter caught his breath, thought for a while, let the seconds pass and started talking about the responsibilities of journalists, then he landed on something as simple as listening to what is being said.

Now the tags went out because the press conference directly had questions about Hugo Larsson and Williot Swedberg. Potter thought he had explained earlier and sufficiently why they had not been accommodated sooner.

Of course he did. But now the situation is different. Now they have slipped in after being rejected. Therefore, it was a given that the subject would be drawn at least one more round.

But I wasn't surprised by Potter's reaction. Have seen it before.

After the WC general rep against Greece, Potter rotted on Radiosporten's reporter. Not because there was anything wrong with the questions about the weak first half but because Potter thought they were being repeated when he had already answered them.

I can only agree with him there.

But no matter how much I listened on Monday and no matter how much was asked, questions remain about Kristoffer Nordfeldt's departure to the national team.

My interpretation is that Potter did not know that his poke would mean the goalkeeper's goodbye to the national team.

And when it comes to the media's possibly negative attitude to the situation for the national team. Oh well. Graham Potter himself thinks that the team must improve in most things to take the next step.

I can only agree with him there.