Johan Gunnar Gren (pronounced [ˈɡɵ̌nːar ˈɡreːn]; 31 October 1920 – 10 November 1991)[1] was a Swedish professional football player and coach.

[2][3] A full international between 1940 and 1958, he won 57 caps and scored 32 goals for the Sweden men's national team.

Gren is considered to be one of Sweden's greatest and most prolific football players;[4] a statue has been erected in his honor outside Gamla Ullevi stadium.

On 7 October 1934, Gothenburg Football Association President Carl 'Ceve' Linde held a juggling contest.

Göteborgs Sport Bladet wrote about 13-year-old Gren's skills and how he outshone some of the big boys in the national league.

[7] His first league match for IFK was in August 1941, when Gothenburg played against Gårda, winning 6–1 with Gren scoring the first goal.

During his time with Milan, he became the 'Gre' part of the famous Gre-No-Li trio with his Swedish teammates Gunnar Nordahl ('No') and Nils Liedholm ('Li').

During the next decade he played 40 matches for the national team, ending in 1949 with 3–1 against Ireland in a World Cup qualifier and 2–2 in a friendly against Hungary.

During this era Gren was part of the team that won the gold medal in the 1948 Olympics in London, scoring twice against Yugoslavia in the final on Wembley.

However, the World Cup of 1958 would be in play on home soil and the Sweden national team seemed too weak for the competition, the Swedish Football Association changed this rule, and Gren, having now ended his professional career and playing in the Swedish Division 2, was again eligible.

Gren went on to be the second oldest player of this World Cup, 37 years old, and played an important role in the silver medal-winning Swedish team.