When Samuel Dahl, a 22-year-old left-back, joined the Swedish national team, he carried a mix of memories from a recent major tournament. Before the Club World Cup even kicked off, Dahl felt a big sense of relief and happiness. Benfica had just made his move from Roma permanent. This secured his spot on the team and gave him a clear path to play more, especially since Carreras was eyeing a move to Real Madrid. “Playing as much as possible was key for me,” Dahl shared. “It felt good that Benfica wanted to buy me. Getting to play gave me a really positive feeling.”
But not all memories from the Club World Cup in the United States were positive for Dahl and his Benfica teammates. The tournament, which saw the Eagles fall to Chelsea in the Round of 16, brought unexpected challenges. Frequent storm warnings caused major disruptions. “It was a totally new experience for us,” Dahl explained. He recalled one game where the team sat in the locker room for nearly two hours, just waiting. Then, in their final match, the Round of 16 clash, the game stopped at the 85-minute mark. Players had to wait for an hour and a half before returning to the field to finish the match. “Playing a game for four or five hours is no fun at all,” he said. “It really takes a toll and wears you out.”
The security measures also stuck with the Swedish defender. Before boarding the team bus, a dog would always be there, sniffing every player’s bags and backpacks. They weren’t even allowed to carry their personal items onto the bus themselves. “It was a very different kind of experience,” Dahl noted. “The security was just incredible, and we saw the same strict checks when we entered the stadium.” He summed up the overall atmosphere simply: “The weather, though, was just horrible.”