In 2022, Johansson arrived from Norwegian side Elverum after starting his professional career at his home club Eskilstuna in Sweden. His strong performances for Elverum in the EHF Champions League raised the interest of many top clubs, before he decided to join THW, like many Swedish players before him.
Since 2021, the Men's 18 EHF EURO 2018 champion has been part of the senior national team. He won the EHF EURO 2022 gold medal after beating Spain in the final at Budapest, and in January he added bronze at the EHF EURO 2024 in Germany to his tally. Around four months later, Johansson returns to the LANXESS arena, now at club level.
“Since January, Cologne has been a special place for me. We won the bronze medal at the EHF EURO in this arena, although we had hoped to make it to the final, but unluckily lost against France. Now, at the EHF FINAL4, I will meet many other Swedish players. I am used to it now, almost every top club in Europe counts on Swedish players, like our semi-final opponents Barça with Jonathan Carlsbogard and Hampus Wanne," he points out.
For the third time in the history of the EHF FINAL4 in Cologne, the two teams with the highest number of EHF Champions League trophies (Barça with 10, and Kiel with four) face each other in the LANXESS arena. In 2010 and 2020, Kiel won the final; in 2022, Barça struck back in the semis.
“Everybody knows that in Cologne everything can happen, the semi-final against Barça can go either way. Kiel have beaten them twice at Cologne, but lost in 2022. For sure, Barça have one of the strongest squads in the world, and they have such extraordinary experience as they are at Cologne almost every year. But I am sure we have a chance,” says Johansson.
One key for Kiel’s eighth participation at Cologne, including the trophies in 2010, 2012 and 2020, is the wide range of top shooters in the centre and left back positions such as Domagoj Duvnjak, Nikola Bilyk, Elias Ellefsen á Skipagøtu and of course Johansson.
“We can switch constantly, with different styles of play. For sure, we have a lot of world class players in the back court,” Johansson says, although he sees himself more as a shooter than as a playmaker. “Especially when we play seven-vs-six, my aim is to break through and score. But I also decide to pass depending the situation,” he explains.
And finally, THW have a huge goal to fulfil in Cologne: to say farewell in style to the all-time top scorer for the club, Niclas Ekberg. After 12 years at THW, the Swede is returning to his home country and will join Ystad this summer. His last ever matches in the THW jersey will come at the EHF FINAL4.
“It is a great gift for Niclas that we made it to Cologne and that he can finish there. But when you are at Cologne, you aim for more than just being there. To make it to the final or even more would be the perfect gift for this club legend,” concludes Johansson.