268. Kurt Hamrin

Kurt Hamrin - 285.83 Performance Pts

Born: 19/11/1934    Stockholm, Sweden        Died: 04/02/2024    Firenze, Italy                   

Position: Winger     Height: 1.69m    Weight: 69kg

Hamrin started his career in his native Sweden with AIK in 1952 and finished off back in his homeland with IFK Stockholm. In between, he had an illustrious 15-year spell in Italy, where he made a huge impact as a goalscoring winger. After a season each with Juventus and Padova, he really made his mark with Fiorentina. Having joined them in 1958, he arrived too late to enjoy their title success of 1956, but he helped them to 2 successive runners-up finishes, in 1959 and 1960, scoring 26 times in each of these seasons. His winning goal against Rangers in the 1961 Cup Winners' Cup final gave the side from Florence further trophy success during a golden age in their history. He ended his time at Fiorentina in 1967 with a goal tally of 150. Milan was his next port of call, and he finally won the Scudetto in his first season there; this 1968 title proved to be the only one of his career. Milan also won the Cup Winners' Cup that year, with victory secured thanks to 2 goals from Hamlin against Hamburg in the final. The following season, Hamrin's goal in the semi-final first leg against holders Manchester United proved crucial as Milan triumphed 2-1 on aggregate, and they went on to beat Ajax in the final. He spent a couple of years with Napoli before returning home to Sweden in 1971. Sweden famously reached the 1958 World Cup Final on home soil, where their hopes of lifting the trophy were dashed by a Pele-inspired Brazil. Hamrin certainly played his part in getting the Swedes this far, with 4 tournament goals, including crucial strikes in both the quarter-final and semi-final. 17 goals in 32 caps indicates his ability to provide a goal threat at international level, to accompany his great scoring record at club level. Appropriately, he settled in Florence after retirement, having made such a huge impact there during his 9 years as a player.



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