Graham Potter on Ostersund's 'David and 10 Goliaths' Arsenal fairytale

Arsene Wenger has been leading Arsenal for longer than Ostersunds FK have been in existence and so you could understand how their manager, Graham Potter, does not think that even the term ‘David and Goliath’ does full justice to yesterday’s Europa League draw.

“It is David and about 10 Goliaths,” he told Telegraph Sport. “There are only 50,000 people in Ostersund. There are more people that fit into The Emirates on a Saturday afternoon. It puts things into context. This is a fairytale.”

It certainly is and the author also just happens to be the one English manager left standing this season in European competition. Potter was what might be labelled a journeyman as a player for Birmingham, Wycombe, Stoke, West Brom, Northampton, Reading, Southampton, York, Boston, Shrewsbury Town and Macclesfield but is something akin to a miracle worker in Sweden where he has been managing Ostersunds since 2011.

They were in the fourth division of the Swedish league when he arrived, having never previously risen above the third tier, but Potter has since inspired three promotions and also their first trophy last season in winning the Swedish Cup. Averages attendances are up from less than 600 in 2006 to almost 6,000 this year.

This is their first appearance in Europe, where clubs like Galatasaray and Hertha Berlin have already been scalps en route to their meeting with Arsenal in February. The first weather warnings have already been sounded. 

“See you at Jamtkraft Arena in February!” said the club’s Twitter account following a message from Arsenal, before cheekily adding: “Please make sure that Wenger has fixed his jacket before traveling, it’s going to be cold.” Potter confirmed that it will be a step into the unknown for Arsenal. 

“I have known it to be minus 18 and two foot of snow, or it can be ok,” he said. “It is quite unpredictable. It will be cold I imagine and probably a unique experience for them.” It has capped a quite remarkable year.

“Incredible,” said Potter. “2017, for us, is going to go down in history I think. So much has happened. To draw Arsenal just seems fitting to round it off. The word fairytale has been used quite a lot, but it is. It is a winter city, there was not really an interest in football before. The interest and pride has built. We took 2,000 over to Berlin and this will certainly make everyone a bit excited over Christmas.”

Potter’s wider strategy might seem relatively conventional - to galvanise team spirit and place the football at the centre of the community – but the methods have certainly been eye-catching. The team celebrated promotion to Sweden’s top flight with their own production of Swan Lake, while Potter himself starred in a concert at the end of last year.

“We thought of cultural activities as a way of taking players out of their comfort zone and building team spirit, helping them be braver,” he explained. “When you involve the community in that they get interested.”

It all feels a long way from the Premier League he once graced – most notably in Southampton’s 6-3 win against Manchester United in 1996 – but his respect for Wenger is vast. “We have earned our run,” he said.

“I do not think you can say we have been fortunate to get to this point and now to play against a legend in English football, in Mr Wenger, is a great honour. We were just delighted. To play a team of that quality, a club of that stature will be amazing for us and everyone connected with our football club.”