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Name - Ronnie Ekelund
Position - Attacking Midfielder
Appearances - 12
Goals - 1
Period - Dec 2000 - Feb 2001

Ronnie began his career in Denmark with Brondby. He made his Brondby debut when he was just 15 years old,  becoming the youngest ever Dane to play in a Supaliga match. 

His performances for Denmark in the 1992 Olympics attracted  the attention of  Johan Cryuff, who consequently signed him for Barcelona.  

He never managed to make an impact in the Barcelona first team, and spent most of his time their B team. 

He moved on to Southampton where he became regular first team player and a favourite with the fans. A bad back injury then led to a lengthily lay off. When he regained match fitness he went on to have short spells with Coventry and Manchester City. 

Ronnie moved back to Denmark in 1996 and signed for Odense FC. His 3 year stay in Denmark came to an end when he signed for Toulouse in 1999. He helped Toulouse escape from relegation, but plans for an extended stay were scuppered when the Toulouse coach was fired the season after. 

He Joined the Saddlers in January 2000. We were flying high in the 2nd Division and needed a spark of creativity in the centre of midfield.

Ray Graydon decided to give him a go, but soon decided that his system was unable to accommodate him. His 12 game stint  saw him start 2 games, 1 of those  was an LDV Vans tie where Graydon put out a Reserve team. 

When he did start he made a good impression. He was a tidy player who used the ball well. You could tell had played at a higher level, he had a great fist touch and excellent vision.  His most memorable performance for the Saddlers was probably an away game against  Bournemouth where we were two goals down  but fought back with goals from Ronnie and Byfield to earn a 2-2 draw. 

Ronnie was never destined to succeed because he wasn't an out and out central midfielder. Certainly not the kind of midfielder that slots nicely in to a 4-4-2. 

Walsall let him leave at the end of February, and Ronnie headed across the Atlantic to America. He landed himself a deal with the San Jose Earthquakes, one of America's strongest teams. 

His first season in the States was success. He set up the winning goal in the deciding Championship game. The next season was just as good as he made the Pepsi MLS Best XI Squad. Ronnie continues to play a key role in the San Jose first team. 

It is ironic that Graydon decided to use the 3-5-2 system later on that season. It was a system tailor made for a player like Ronnie. It is a shame we never managed to find a role for such a gifted player at our club. 

Photo: John Todd/San Jose Earthquakes. Thank you to Jesper Hansen and Thomas Nexo for their help with this profile.