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Fullname: Eric Benjamin Nygren
aka: Benjamin Nygren
Born: 8 July 2001
Birthplace: Gothenburg, Sweden
Signed: 27 Jun 2025 (est €1.5m/£1.3m from Nordsjaelland)
Left: –
Position: Midfielder/Right-winger
Debut: Celtic 1-0 St Mirren, SP, 3 Aug 2025
Squad No.: 08
Internationals: Sweden
International Caps: [TBC at end of career]
International Goals: [TBC at end of career]
Biog
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Quotes
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Playing Career
[Table to indicate clubs played for, including dates, transfers and fees where known [e.g. soccerbase table]]
| APPEARANCES (subs) |
LEAGUE | SCOTTISH CUP | LEAGUE CUP | EUROPE | TOTAL |
| 2025-26 | |||||
| Goals | |||||
| 2026-27 | |||||
| Goals | |||||
| 2027-28 | |||||
| Goals | |||||
| 2028-29 | |||||
| Goals | |||||
| Total | |||||
| Goals |
Honours with Celtic
(Honours are marked below in which the player has played in at least one of the matches in the campaign.)
Scottish League
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Scottish Cup
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Scottish League Cup
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Pictures
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Notes
Articles
Celtic buy Sweden’s ‘exciting’ Nygren from Nordsjaelland
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/articles/c8jg4p8l712o
Sweden winger Benjamin Nygren has joined Celtic on for an undisclosed fee from Nordsjaelland, with manager Brendan Rodgers suggesting “he’s a player that I’m sure our supporters will enjoy watching”.
The 23-year-old, who has signed a five-year contract, has scored 35 goals in 107 appearances for the Danish side and has had spells with IFK Gothenburg, Genk and Heerenveen.
Nygren has scored twice in his first four senior international appearances, which have all taken place in 2025.
“He’s an exciting, quality player who will add to our attacking options,” Rodgers said.
“He’s a young player who’s already gained plenty of experience at club level, while his impressive performances last season also saw him gain his first caps for Sweden.”
Nygren told Celtic TV that “I feel amazing” after completing his transfer.
“I’m a very competitive person and this is something that I love about Celtic,” he said. “It’s a huge club and I love that – and also the winning mentality.
“I want to be with similar-minded people who also love to win.”
Asked what fans can expect from him, the Swede added: “I’m a player who wants to create a lot of chances and go towards goal.
“I’m a link between the defence and the offence and I can run a lot. I’m an offensive-minded player, but I also work hard and try to do my best in all parts of the game.
“I had my breakthrough when I was very young, so even though I’m 23 years old, I have played over 200 games. I have a lot of experience and that’s what I want to bring.”
Nygren leaves Nordsjaelland as the fourth-highest scoring player in their history after just three-and-a-half seasons with the side he helped finish fifth in the Danish Superleague last season.
“I came to FC Nordsjælland as a young boy and now I am leaving the club as a grown man,” he told the club website. “It has been a fantastic time for me.
“It has been important for me to play regularly and get big challenges both in the Superliga and in the Conference League. I was proud to wear the captain’s armband in many of the games this spring.”
Football director Alexander Riget said Nygren was moving on “by mutual agreement”.
“Benjamin Nygren is a really good example of what we can do as a football club,” he said.
“He came to FC Nordsjaelland as a 20-year-old talent who needed to find himself and now he is moving on in his career after having gone through a strong development where he has most recently established himself as a Swedish A-national team player.”
Benjamin Nygren: I was delighted to celebrate my goal with the fans
By Paul Cuddihy, Celtic View Editor
10 Aug 2025, 3:36 pm
Benjamin Nygren scored his first goal in Celtic colours, firing home from a Kieran Tierney to give the Hoops a 1-0 lead at Pittodrie.
And the Swedish internationalist turned provider in the second-half, slotting the ball in for Reo Hatate to produce a stunning finish to set the seal on an impressive Celtic performance.
Nygren picked up the Man of the Match award after the game, and the 24-year-old midfielder was delighted to play his part in the victory as he explained to Celtic TV.
“It was a very good game and a solid performance from everyone,” he said. “I think especially the players at the back had an amazing game.
“Aberdeen couldn’t get through us and I thought, in general, that it was a very good performance. We had good control, a perfect win and a clean sheet.
“That’s how I want to play. I can run a lot so I want to be involved as much as possible and help the team to win, so I’m very pleased with my performance and the team’s performance today.
“It was amazing (his goal) – a perfect cross from Kieran and a solid finish, and I ran over to celebrate with the fans and the team.
“I’ve said it many times but, for me, football is nothing without the fans. Celtic is such a big club with lovely fans so they’re a part of the team and part of the club, so I’m so happy to celebrate with everyone.”
Peter Lovenkrands defends Benjamin Nygren from critics after watching Celtic man’s career in Denmark
Amir Mir
Tue 24 February 2026 14:00, UK
One of the positives from Celtic’s defeat to Hibernian on Sunday was Benjamin Nygren getting on the scoresheet again.
Despite Celtic as a team struggling for goals this season, the summer signing from FC Nordsjælland has found the back of the net with ease, just like he did in midweek against VfB Stuttgart in the Europa League, and then against Hibs.
Peter Lovenkrands watched Nygren during his days in Denmark, and he lauded the Sweden international as ‘quite impressive’ despite having his critics.
The former SPFL striker thinks Nygren has been ‘getting a lot of stick’ this season, but he came to the versatile forward’s defence.
Peter Lovenkrands on watching Benjamin Nygren’s career amid Celtic goals
Speaking on BBC Sportscene, Lovenkrands didn’t argue that ‘you don’t see much’ of Nygren when he is playing in the middle of the park.
But he feels the Celtic man makes up for it with his ‘late runs’ into the box, and his ability to find the back of the net again and again.
Nygren’s header against Hibernian was his 18th strike of the season, and Lovenkrands thinks ‘he has been great’ for the champions of Scotland.
“He has been getting a lot of stick, sometimes,” said Lovenkrands. “I don’t think he has deserved most of it.
“Yeah, he has been one of those players who you don’t see as much. But 18 goals and six assists for Celtic this season. That’s quite impressive for a midfielder, and you’re not even at the split yet.
“He’s probably got more goals in him. He is always there. Late runs into the box. This is what he is so good at. He did this so much in Denmark when I watched him for Nordsjælland. He comes into the box, late runs into the box, and he’s a good finisher.
“That’s a header coming in (against Hibernian). He knows just to get the head on it. Get it into the ground.
“For me, he is getting a little too hard stick. I think he has been great.”
The issue with Nygren isn’t the player himself, but what is around him. Celtic’s midfield has struggled, and the strikers can’t find the back of the net.
Then you have the wide players lacking potency, and the defence already conceding more this season than they did for the entire 2024/25 campaign.
You want more from Nygren, outside of his goals, but he isn’t a box-to-box midfielder, nor is he a player who runs the show from the middle of the park, so his performances are devalued when that shouldn’t be the case.
Chris Sutton says Benjamin Nygren Celtic’s ‘strangest player’ despite elite 11.6km Euro running stats
Amir Mir
Tue 3 March 2026 19:30, UK
Benjamin Nygren has 18 goals to his name this season, but the Celtic star still has his critics.
One of them is Chris Sutton, who only over a month ago stated that Nygren ‘hasn’t been a success‘ since moving to Celtic in the summer from FC Nordsjælland.
Fast forward to the present, and Sutton has stated that Nygren is ‘the strangest player’ in Scotland following the Hoops’ 2-2 draw at Rangers on Sunday at Ibrox.
“He’s the strangest player in Scottish football,” said Sutton. “You look at his goals record, and it’s amazing.
“He has this tremendous instinct for goals. But actually, what you want from him in that midfield is to control games. I just don’t think he has the legs.”
What has Chris Sutton said about Benjamin Nygren now?
Nygren started in the middle of the park at Ibrox, alongside Callum McGregor and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain – the latter was subbed off at half-time.
It was Reo Hatate who changed the game, as Sutton was touching upon Celtic’s slow-paced midfield following the match.
That’s when he mentioned the ‘enigma’ that is Nygren, and how he has a ‘tremendous instinct’ for goals, but doesn’t have the legs to operate in the middle of the park, as he told the Warm-Up.
“Martin O’Neill, the changes he made at half-time, was that an admission that he got things wrong in the first half?” said Sutton. “I think so.
“I also have sympathy for him because, when you look at Hatate’s performances this season. They have been so poor. He looks so disinterested. He looks like he is sulking.
“With Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, I talked to you before the game about Celtic’s midfield. You have to have legs.
“Nygren is an enigma, isn’t he? He’s the strangest player in Scottish football. You look at his goals record, and it’s amazing.
“He has this tremendous instinct for goals. But actually, what you want from him in that midfield is to control games. I just don’t think he has the legs. I don’t know what his best position is. I think that’s something that has been levelled at him throughout his career.”
Unfortunately, Scottish football doesn’t provide week-to-week in-game data where fans, pundits and the media can digest the detailed stats of teams and players.
But UEFA’s tracking data does provide those detailed stats, and Nygren’s running stats on the European stage this season make for interesting reading.
The Swedish star played ten Europa League games this term, starting seven of them, playing over 600 minutes and playing around 60 minutes per match.
Games Starts Goals Assists Total minutes Distance covered per match Top speed
10 7 4 1 616 11.6KM 31.47 km/h
The interesting thing here is that an all-action midfielder in the Europa League is covering an average of ‘11.5 km to 12.5 km per 90 minutes’, so in that sense, Nygren is hitting the mark.
On such a difficult stage, he is showing he has the legs to move across the pitch; perhaps it’s just a perception that has grown around his game since moving to Scotland?
When it comes to speed, the top players are around the ‘35.0 km/h to 36.5 km/h’ mark, which isn’t a surprise because Nygren isn’t known for his speed, but he still covers the ground very well, despite that.
Nygren is still moving around the pitch in Europe like an elite player would; perhaps he needs better legs around him to bring the most out of him, rather than looking at the player himself?