UEFA Nations League: Sweden to start campaign without injured Ibrahimovic

Ibrahimovic has struggled with a knee injury in recent months, last playing a full 90 minutes in January for his club AC Milan.

Janne Andersson's side is away to Slovenia before hosting Norway and Serbia, followed by a trip to face Norway on June 12. (File Photo)

Striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic will not feature for Sweden in their four UEFA Nations League matches next month, national team manager Janne Andersson said on Wednesday.

Ibrahimovic has struggled with a knee injury in recent months, last playing a full 90 minutes in January for his club AC Milan.

"Everyone knows that he has had an injury problem for a while and has withdrawn from the tournament from that perspective," Andersson said.

Ibrahimovic first retired from the Swedish national team after Euro 2016, but returned for their World Cup qualifiers in 2021.

He is Sweden's all-time leading scorer, with 62 goals in 121 games.

When asked if Ibrahimovic had permanently ruled himself out of playing for Sweden, Andersson said he would stay in contact with the 40-year-old.

"We will keep in touch in the future, we agreed on this last time we spoke. We just talked about the upcoming games, nothing else," Andersson said.

Rangers defender Filip Helander and Sampdoria midfielder Albin Ekdal have also been ruled out of the squad due to injuries.

Sweden, which has been drawn in group B4, is away to Slovenia (June 3) before hosting Norway (June 6) and Serbia (June 10), followed by a trip to face Norway on June 12.

Squad: Goalkeepers: Andreas Linde (Greuther Furth), Kristoffer Nordfeldt (AIK), Robin Olsen (Aston Villa). Defenders: Joel Andersson (Midtjylland), Ludwig Augustinsson (Sevilla), Hjalmar Ekdal (Djurgarden), Gabriel Gudmundsson(Lille), Emil Krafth (Newcastle), Alexander Milosevic (AIK), Joakim Nilsson (Arminia Bielefeld), Victor Nilsson Lindelof (Manchester United), Martin Olsson (Malmo), Carl Starfelt (Celtic). Midfielders: Viktor Claesson (F.C. Copenhagen), Emil Forsberg (RB Leipzig), Jesper Karlsson (AZ Alkmaar), Jesper Karlstrom (Lech Poznan), Kerim Mrabti (Mechelen), Kristoffer Olsson (Anderlecht), Mattias Svanberg (Bologna). Attackers: Anthony Elanga (Manchester United), Viktor Gyokeres (Coventry City), Dejan Kulusevski (Tottenham Hotspur), Robin Quaison (Al-Ettifaq), Alexander Isak (Real Sociedad).