Sirius sell Robbie Ure to Sevilla while remaining Allsvenskan leaders
Sirius, the runaway Allsvenskan leaders from Uppsala, sold striker Robbie Ure to Sevilla midway through the season even as they press their title challenge. The transfer was reported as a club-record fee of £5.6m plus add-ons for a player who had 15 goals in 15 games.
Captain Henrik Castegren said he remained upbeat about the team’s prospects after Ure’s departure, telling reporters: “I’m actually really confident.” He added: “I’m really happy for Robbie, but also quite sad because I enjoyed playing with him a lot. I think he was by far the best player in this league for the first six months [of the season] … but, with that being said, I’m feeling quite comfortable with us moving forward.” Sirius previously moved Leo Walta to Swansea, initially on loan in February before the transfer was made permanent this summer for a fee reported at around £3m.
Sporting director Jonathan Ederström described the club’s transfer model as deliberate, saying: “One important part of our strategy is to have a lot of sellable players.” He framed that approach against the club’s modest history, adding: “We’re not the biggest in Sweden, we’re not the richest in Sweden, we don’t have the fanciest history in Sweden, but we decided that we were going to aim to become the best in terms of development.” The sale and reinvestment blueprint, Ederström said, has helped Sirius mount an unexpected challenge for a first Allsvenskan title.
The fee for Ure is being used both to strengthen the squad and to improve club infrastructure, with new signings already arriving. Sirius have signed Jesper Uneken, a 22-year-old forward from PSV Eindhoven, and Otso Liimatta, a Finland Under-21 midfielder from Famalicão, as part of the reinvestment. Ederström described the move as beneficial for all involved: “It’s such a good thing for all parties,” and called Ure’s next step “a fantastic journey for Robbie, but it’s also fantastic for Sirius.” He added that the club hopes the transfer makes them more attractive globally: “It can be close by in Sweden but it can also be Belgium, or Netherlands, or Scotland obviously. Hopefully it helps us getting the next Robbie here.”
Sirius’s league position gives them room for adjustment after Ure’s exit: they sit 12 points clear of second-placed Hammarby and remain undefeated in the league with just under half the season to play. Isak Bjerkebo has provided attacking support, registering 14 goals and nine assists in all competitions, while Mohamed Soumah, a goalscoring centre-back signed with funds from the Walta deal, bolsters one of the league’s tightest defences. The side also relies on a high-tempo midfield built to pressure opponents.
Andreas Engelmark, appointed head coach in January last year, has overseen a transformation from a difficult start to the season to the current run of results. Sirius spent a period last season near relegation — dropping to 14th, the Allsvenskan’s relegation playoff spot — and suffered an 8-2 defeat at Djurgården in September, but have not lost in the league since. Castegren praised Engelmark’s consistency and player-focused approach, saying: “Even though he went tough when the results weren’t there last summer, he stuck to what he thought was the best going forward,” and added: “He really sees you as a player and adjusts small things to get the most out of you, and also how you can complement the team as a collective. I really feel comfortable, in that sense, now Robbie has left us, that we can find ways to get results, to perform well and play well.”
Support in Uppsala has surged alongside the team’s results, with attendances at Studenternas described as rising and matches drawing packed crowds. Castegren said: “With the results that have come, I think the city has really turned it on,” and noted: “You can see blue and black shirts wherever you go … you can tell also by the numbers we have at the games, in the audience. It’s a packed house every game, which you couldn’t even think would be a reality three years ago when I first came here.” Ederström pointed to a wider pattern in the region, saying: “Because the big teams underperform,” and citing recent instances of unexpected title winners in Scandinavia, including last season’s champions Mjällby, Viking in Norway and Aarhus in Denmark.
There remains work to do for Sirius to convert their position into a historic first title, but club leaders highlighted the wider impact of their campaign on Uppsala. “The biggest thing for me this season is what we have created in Uppsala as a city,” adds Ederström. “To have something to believe in, to have something so important in [people’s] life … we really appreciate that.”