I didn't say I wanted to leave West Brom, says Olsson
Jun 5 2009 by Robert Tanner, Birmingham Post
West Bromwich Albion defender Jonas Olsson has denied saying he wants to leave the club this summer.
Olsson had been reported as saying he wished to leave Albion after one season at The Hawthorns to remain in the Premier League.
The 26-year-old central defender had given an interview to a newspaper while on holiday in his native Sweden and the quotes that appeared in England included the line ‘I will leave this June’, but Olsson said it was a classic case of lost in translation.
“The quotes that have appeared on the internet have not been correctly translated from a Swedish newspaper I spoke to,” he said.
“I never said anything about wanting to leave West Brom.
“What I actually said is that once you’ve tasted the Premier League, you want to keep playing there.
“I have heard there are a few clubs discussing my name but I leave that to my agent, Martin Dahlin.
“I said that I’m on vacation in June and that I don’t want to think about it right now. I’ll see what happens when I get back from my holiday.
“It is every player’s ambition to take another step – regardless of where they’re playing.
“But I stressed to the Swedish newspaper that I like the club and the city. I definitely didn’t say I would be leaving.”
Aston Villa, Everton, Blackburn Rovers and Bolton Wanderers are said to be interested in Olsson but Albion said at the end of the season that they would not be selling their best players and Olsson certainly falls into that category.
Olsson was one of the few bright lights for Albion last season and Mowbray said at the end of the campaign that his failure to find a consistent partner for the 6’4” defender was a factor in the side’s relegation.
He was a raw recruit when he arrived last August from NEC Nijmegen for an initial fee of £800,000 but after his performances last season it would take a fee substantially greater to prise him away from The Hawthorns.
Meanwhile, one player who will be with Albion next season is striker Chris Wood who has continued his own personal development by making his full international for New Zealand.
The 17-year-old, who has just signed his first professional contract with the Baggies, won his first senior international cap in the All Whites’ 2-1 friendly defeat by Tanzania in Dar es Salaam.
Wood played the first 55 minutes before being replaced by Chris Killen.
