Today we have another exciting matchup between FIFA’s #33 and #31 ranked nations: Côte d’Ivoire and Norway. In a matchup without a clear favourite, where neither side has extensive World Cup knockout experience, there is potential for brilliance, mistakes, and a lot of scoring chances.
How They Got Here:
Côte d’Ivoire steamrolled a CAF qualification group that was no guarantee, with the likes of Gabon, Gambia, and Kenya alongside them, picking up 8 wins and 2 draws while scoring 25 and conceding 0. That’s right, Côte d’Ivoire did not concede a single goal in qualifying. It doesn’t matter what team, federation, or opponents, keeping 10 straight clean sheets shouldn’t be realistically achievable. Their scoring was also impressively by committee. Top scorer Seko Fofana had just 3 goals in qualifying, while another eight players had 2, and six more Ivorians contributed a goal over their qualifying run. That’s fifteen different goalscorers, which is very enviable depth scoring going into a major tournament where it is needed more than ever. Côte d’Ivoire are the real deal, and have potential to go far in this tournament if they win today. They’re very solid in defense, and can hurt you in endless ways in attack.
The Ivorians were drawn into a group with Germany, Ecuador, and Curaçao, with most initial predictions having them and Ecuador in a close race for 2nd place in the group. Starting the tournament against Ecuador, Côte d’Ivoire were the clearly better side in what was a back-and-forth game at times. Both goalkeepers made fantastic saves, but Amad Diallo found the back of the net in stoppage time to give Côte d’Ivoire a 1-0 victory. In their second match against Germany, Côte d’Ivoire were the marginally better side in the first half despite having only 39% possession. While Germany attempted to double-team the Ivorian “golden boy” Yan Diomande (as his team refers to him) for the entire match, Leroy Sané failed to track back on one key occasion, leaving Diomande 1 on 1 with Joshua Kimmich. While a legend of the game, there was no way Kimmich could keep up with Diomande at his age, and the Ivorian winger beat him to the goal-line before lashing a ball across the box that would’ve been an assist had Germany not made a goal-line block on the initial shot. However the ball fell to Franck Kessié who made no mistake, putting the Ivorians up. The second half saw Côte d’Ivoire attempt to protect their lead, which if you read the Germany preview, ended in the Denis Undav show, 2-1 Germany. The Ivorians needed a result against Curaçao to advance, which they obtained comfortably by the margin of 2-0. Ecuador’s draw to Curaçao gave Ivory coast 2nd place in the group, only losing out to Germany on the H2H matchup result.
Norway had a much less-certain path to qualification, something that has not been the norm for Norway in recent editions of the World Cup, where they have often stumbled at this UEFA qualification hurdle. This year was different and Norway had a point to prove. In a group with Italy, who many favoured to qualify, Norway were perfect. 8-0-0 with a +32 goal differential over fellow European nations such as Italy, Estonia, and Moldova, and the vikings were en route to the World Cup. Norway arrived to what many saw as one of the tournaments “Groups of Death”, alongside France, Senegal, and Iraq. Both France and Senegal have considerably more World Cup experience than Norway and this group would prove a good test. Norway got a bit of schedule-benefit, starting their tournament against Iraq, and dominating with a 4-1 win. This set up a crucial clash with Senegal on MD2, with the winner of this game being in pole position to qualify in 2nd place behind France. Norway showed both their strengths, going up 2-0 just after halftime, but also the cracks in their team, conceding a goal just 5 minutes later to bring the result back into doubt. Erling Haaland was on form in this match, and he struck again 5 minutes after the Senegal goal to restore Norway’s 2 goal lead. This lead would prove crucial as Ismaila Sarr would add another goal in the 90+3′, but Senegal’s comeback would fall just short and Norway took a thrilling 3-2 victory that ensured their qualification to the knockouts in 2nd place at worst. Manager Stale Solbakken decided that winning the group against France on the final day was unachievable and rested 10/11 starters, including the keeper. “Norway B” if you will, performed admirably against France but there was a gulf of a difference in class between Ousmane Dembélé and any Norwegian defender who tried to challenge him. A hat-trick for the Frenchman and Norway finished 2nd in their group, setting up this clash against Côte d’Ivoire.
What To Expect (Playstyle):
Côte d’Ivoire’s success is built upon their strong defensive foundation. They have the players to start multiple backlines of World Cup-quality, and have a very strong defensive record. Franck Kessié and Ibrahim Sangaré offer good protection for the backline in rest-defence and break up plenty of opposition counter-attack before they reach the Ivorian final third. They can play direct, or build out from the back. Look for Guela Doué to get forward down the right flank from his RB position and overlap for Nicolas Pepe at RW, who will be looking to cut inside onto his left. Young target-man Ange-Yoan Bonny of Inter Milan starts up top, and will look to be the attacking focal point for crosses and balls into the box.
At LW is Yan Diomande, the danger man for Côte d’Ivoire. A 1v1 dribbling specialist, Diomande will require constant double-teams from the Norwegian defence. Côte d’Ivoire like to create chances through their wide players, with the wingers looking to get balls into the box as often as possible. The midfielders crash the box very well and will be in position to be a threat on second phase balls. If Norway look to double-team Diomande, keep an eye on how this affects the rest of their defensive structure.
Norway will play this match in a 4-3-3 formation, which is really more of an offset 4-4-2. Haaland and Sorloth are the two strikers, with Sorloth playing at RW and being the main man for Norway as an outlet. They’ll look to direct defensive clearances his way, with Sorloth operating as a wide target forward. Antonio Nusa is a very exciting winger who starts on Haaland’s left, and is the only natural winger in the Norway starting XI. He will look to have a lot of the same impact as Yan Diomande will for the opposition and get past Guela Doué in their 1v1 battles. Patrick Berg, Sander Berge, and Martin Odegaard start in midfield. Expect Odegaard to get forward and also to drift onto the RW in possession as Sorloth moves centrally. He is Norway’s primary chance creator, and if he receives the ball in space he has the ability to send Haaland in alone on goal. Berg and Berge (two different players, yes) will play more as a double-pivot, with Berge as the 6 and Patrick Berg as the 8. Patrick Berg is a natural 6 for Bodo/Glimt, but can get forward in attack and showed his ability in assisting Haaland’s 2nd against Senegal.
In defense, Norway will rely a lot on their FB’s, David Moller Wolfe and Marcus Holmgren Pedersen, both to defend the dangerous Ivorian wingers, and to get forward in attack to send crosses into the box. The partnership between Moller Wolfe and Nusa on the left has been very good this tournament, with both players showing strong chemistry with one another. Holmgren Pedersen replaces the injured Julian Ryerson, and will be the man tasked with Yan Diomande. Torbjorn Heggem and Kristoffer Ajer are the CB pairing who will have plenty of decisions to make in box defence against the waves of attack that Côte d’Ivoire bring.
This match will come down to how well Norway can get the ball to their front players in space to make an impact, and how well they can defend the Ivorian wingers. If Côte d’Ivoire can prevent Norway’s midfield from sustaining possession and contributing to more controlled buildup, then their backline will have a good chance to win duels on Norways direct aerial balls. Norway will have to push players forward to break this Ivorian defence, unless Haaland can play at the inhuman level he is capable of. They will be very exposed in transition and I do expect Côte d’Ivoire to take advantage of this. Côte d’Ivoire likely want this game to remain low-event and scoreless for as long as possible, sap the Norwegians confidence, and strike late with impact subs. It really could go either way. Both teams have a point to prove in the World Cup knockouts without the experience of having been here before.
Result?:
With the obvious disclaimer that this is a match who’s result is up in the air, my prediction is a 1-goal victory for Côte d’Ivoire, either 1-0 or 2-1.
Hello everyone, been busy, sorry for the brief absence. A full 2026 Eliteserien season preview awaits you today, so if you need to know more about the Norwegian top-flight, look no further!
Promotions/Relegations:
Last season, we said goodbye to three clubs who were relegated to the OBOS-ligaen, the Norwegian 2nd tier. For FK Haugesund, it was almost a foregone conclusion from the midway point of the season, finishing with just 9 points from 30 matches. Strømsgodset had a slightly better showing with 20 points, but were also automatically relegated. For Bryne, it was by narrow margins – finishing just 2 points shy of safety in their first season up, and having to play the promotion/relegation playoff against Aalesund. This was not very close, finishing 4-1 to Aalesund on aggregate, who gained promotion to the Eliteserien after a two year absence! Joining them coming up from the OBOS-ligaen are Lillestrøm, who ran away with the league, winning it by 25 points and going unbeaten. IK Start needed to win on the final day of the season to guarantee automatic promotion and did so comfortably, with a 3-0 win.
Promoted: Lillestrøm, Start, Aalesund
Relegated: Haugesund, Strømsgodset, Bryne
Map of Participating Clubs:
The Eliteserien remains a very southern-biased league in its composition, which is fair enough given the already cold climate in Norway. Bodø/Glimt and Tromsø, the northern rivals, remain the only two northern teams in the league for yet another season. Only two clubs represent the capital city of Oslo: KFUM Oslo and Vålerenga. and the longest away day depends on how you look at it! As the crow flies, it is Start-Tromsø. However if you were driving, the trip from Stavanger, the home of Viking, is actually longer due to the possible routes.
Here is a breakdown of each 2026 Eliteserien club last season, their transfers, and what we might expect from them this season:
Aalesund FK:
Last season, Aalesund played mostly a 3-5-2 formation under their manager Kjetil Rekdal. The midfield 3 combine for a lot of goals. Mathias Christensen scored 6 (10 assists), Hakon Hammer scored 6 (1 assist), and Henrik Melland scored 11 (4 assists) last season for Aalesund. Their current main scoring threat up front is Danish striker Paul Ngongo Iversen, who scored a goal every 3 matches in the OBOS-ligaen last season. However, they have brought in a relatively unknown striker in Ivan Djantou, from Sönderjyske in Denmark. He doesn’t have a prolific scoring record, but is another tall forward added to Aalesund’s squad. They appear to be preparing for a relegation scrap, with their other most notable signing being the Viking goalkeeper, Kristoffer Klaesson. Now, in terms of Goals Prevented, and some of Klaesson’s other numbers, you can see why Viking were happy to sell him. (Their new keeper signing from Slovakia will be mentioned later on). However, acquiring a keeper who won the league literally last season is experience that a newly promoted club rarely gets the opportunity to acquire. I think this is a win-win for both parties here, and Klaesson may have a breakout season getting to face more shots and be the undisputed #1 with Aalesund. I’m not sure if Aalesund have added enough offensive firepower to have a strong chance at a top-half push, but they could well do enough to avoid relegation.
FK Bodø/Glimt:
Last season, Glimt missed out on the title by a very narrow margin. In a way, they are suffering from their European success, domestically. A deep Europa League run that coincided with the start of the 2025 season, followed by participating in the Champions League during the later stages of the Eliteserien season. As a result, you might think that they would have looked to bring in some more players to manage the increased fixture congestion. However, that appears not to be the case! With no signings in January, Kjetil Knutsen will be heading into the start of the 2026 Eliteserien season with the team he finished last year with – aside from the departure of Mathias Jorgensen to Blackburn.
The lack of a sale of Kasper Hogh could more or less be considered a signing, as there was ample interest in the Danish striker from the UK following his impressive UCL performances. All bids were rejected, and Hogh will be seeing out the Champions League season with Glimt. A summer departure is not off the table.
Longtime veteran and Glimt mainstay at CB, Brede Mathias Moe, retired following the end of the 2025 season. Young Villads Nielsen of Denmark will be looking to pick up some more minutes and fill that gap, while Odin Bjortuft and Jostein Gundersen are the starting CB pair for now. It will be interesting to see the season that Mikkel Bro Hansen, the 17 year old striker, has – if Kasper Hogh leaves, he is really the only other natural striker on the team, and I would expect his minutes to increase this season. Aside from that, expect a motivated and hungry Glimt side who will be looking to reclaim the Eliteserien title amidst balancing Champions League play.
SK Brann:
Brann had a strong season last year, but have lost some key players ahead of this season. Most notably, their young star CB Eivind Helland was sold to Bologna for a sizeable 7M euro fee. They also lost Aune Heggebo during the summer window, who was one of the league’s best strikers before departing. Midfield regular Emil Kornvig was sold to Lodz in the Polish Ekstralasa, while CB Japhet Sery Larsen was sold to Philadelphia in the MLS. So what have Brann done in response?
Danish midfielder Jacob Lungi Sorensen was signed from Norwich City, where he’d spent the past 5 seasons, even gaining some Premier League experience. I expect him to have a solid impact in the Eliteserien this season and be a big player for Brann. Former Lillestrom LB Vetle Dragsnes was brought back to Norway from Union Charleroi, while promising 19 year old Ghanaian CB Nana Kwame Boakye was signed from Sheriff Tiraspol in Moldova. Boakye and Sorensen both have Europa League experience, which should help Brann as they will play in European competition this season. Striker Noah Holm was signed to replace Heggebo, a Rosenborg academy product who has shown flashes of good potential. Finally, Icelandic midfielder Kristall Mani Ingason was signed from Sönderjyske.
Overall I think there are some very good signings in this bunch, especially given the experience that Brann have added. The squad might take some time to gain chemistry, but I would expect Brann to be up in the Top 5 competing for European places again this season. Watch for Boakye to potentially have a breakout season for Brann.
Frederikstad FK:
After a surprise 6th place finish in their first season back in the Eliteserien, Frederikstad gained some experience in UEFA competitions last season against good opposition: falling to FC Midtjylland and Crystal Palace in the qualifying rounds. They finished the 2025 Eliteserien season in 8th place, and will be looking to challenge for the European places again this season.
Frederikstad had some trouble scoring last season, averaging just 1.3 goals per match, but also had the 2nd best defence in the league, conceding just 1.2 goals permatch. They are a low possession, direct side who often play on the counter. Having sold Maxwell Woledzi, their standout CB, to Nashville SC this winter, Frederikstad had some money to bring in reinforcements.
In comes Max Nilsson from Landskrona in the Swedish Superettan for a 500k euro fee: a versatile midfielder/WB who has been a regular starter for Landskrona since he was 18. Now 20 years old, Nilsson and Frederikstad will be hoping he can take the next step in his career in the Eliteserien. Continuing the trend of younger talent being brought in, Stabaek duo Aleksander Andresen (LB, 20 years old) and Joachim Nysveen (RB, 19 years old) were both brought in for free.
Most exciting was the signing of Chris Irénée Ntamack Pondy. A high-potential, 18 year old Cameroonian CB, Pondy was wanted by some of Europe’s biggest clubs, before Frederikstad hijacked the deal and brought in the youngster. They can offer playing time that say, Chelsea, can not, and this is a smart move for Pondy to develop further while playing regularly.
Overall, I’m not sure if Frederikstad have done enough to address their goal production issues, but if the defending remains as strong as last year, they will have a good chance to finish in the top 6.
Hamarkamaratene (HamKam):
HamKam had a disappointing season last year, finishing 11th, 6 points above the relegation places. Stay up though, they did, and have made some moves to improve their starting XI before the 2026 season. Promising young CB Ethan Amundsen-Day was brought back to Norway from the Aston Villa youth system, while Martin Gjone was acquired for 120k from Sandefjord. Experienced Swiss attacking midfielder Loris Mettler was also brought in from Sandefjord, along with Ian Hoffman, a 24 year old RM/RWB from Lech Poznan. All four players started in HamKam’s recent cup fixture against Lillestrom.
Expect a back-heavy tactical setup from HamKam, a 3 CB backline is a staple, and the 3-5-2 formation will likely be seen often. HamKam will rely on veteran goalkeeper Marcus Sandberg yet again, who was one of the better keepers in the Eliteserien last season. Give the new-look team some time to gel, and HamKam may surprise with a mid-table finish, though the 9th-12th range does seem more reasonable.
KFUM Oslo:
KFUM Oslo were promoted to the Eliteserien ahead of the 2024 season, and have managed to stay up in each of their first two seasons: 8th place in 2024, followed by a more nervous 12th place finish in 2025, just 4 points above relegation. KFUM were busy in the offseason, signing 8 new players permanently along with the loan of Lech Poznan keeper, Krzysztof Bakowski. Three of the new signings made their first starts for KFUM in their recent cup win over Tromso: RW Rasmus Eggen Vinge, signed for 500k from Stabaek after recording 5 goals and 4 assists in the OBOS-ligaen last season. Left-back Eirik Saunes was signed from Bryne for 250k, and Tore André Sørås debuted for KFUM after his move from HamKam. Very experienced AM/ST Magnus Wolff Eikrem was brought in from Molde FK. With 264 league appearances and 76 goals for Molde FK, Eikrem brings invaluable Eliteserien experience to this KFUM Oslo side. The reinvigoration of the side with new signings should help propel KFUM back into the fight for a top-10 place in the Eliteserien this season.
Kristiansund BK:
Kristiansund came even closer to the drop than KFUM, finishing just 2 points clear in 13th place last season. Excluding Haugesund, who were an outlier in how poor they were last season, Kristiansund had the worst attack, and 2nd-worst defence in the league. These are considerable issues to fix in one transfer window, and it does not appear as if Kristiansund has been able to address them. Without a sale in the January window to bring in money for new signings, Kristiansund were limited to what they could do with free transfers. Young midfielder Heine Gikling Bruseth was signed from San Diego FC (MLS), alongside fellow midfielder Jesper Isaksen, from Stabaek. Alexander Munksgaard was signed as a new RB from Banik Ostrava, along with a few more free signings. Regular starter at CB, Marius Olsen, signed with GKS Katowice on a free, while fellow CB Axel Guessand moved to Pafos. In addition, Mikkel Rakneberg, a regular at LB last season, moved to VfL Bochum. It is hard to say that Kristiansund won’t be battling relegation this year. At best, we can say that they replaced the numbers in the squad that they lost, but should struggle to avoid a bottom-3 finish.
Lillestrøm SK:
Lillestrøm are returning to the Eliteserien after their shock relegation in the 2024 season, going unbeaten in the OBOS-ligaen to win automatic promotion. They were able to cash in on young Senegalese ST Moctar Diop, receiving a 1M euro fee from Gent. Their starting keeper ,Mads Hedenstad, has signed with Aarhus GF on a free transfer, while LB Kristoffer Tønnessen moved to Start on a free. A new keeper in Pontus Dahlberg was signed from IFK Göteborg for 250k. The almost 2m tall, 27 year old keeper will look to do his part in keeping Lillestrøm up this year. Swedish-Palestinian winger Camil Jebara was signed from Elsborg for 260k, rounding up the paid transfers. A mix of youth and experience was added through free transfers, including the likes of LB John Kitolano joining from Aalesund, and young Gustav Nyheim joining from Molde. Given last seasons results, it is clear that Lillestrøm are no ordinary “newly promoted” side, and I do expect them to avoid a relegation battle this season to reclaim their regular Eliteserien spot.
Molde FK:
Molde are seriously loading up their squad ahead of the 2026 season. From 2017-2022, Molde finished in the Top 2 places in the Eliteserien. The next two seasons, they finished a respectable 5th place. However last season, Molde plummeted to a 10th place finish, their worst since the 2010 season. They are acting like they want to remedy that, having spent over 8.5M euros on new signings since the 2025 summer window opened, with 6M of those signings coming in the winter window that just closed. The marquee signing is 21-year old Ghanaian ST, Jalal Abdullai. Signed for a 3M euro fee from Elfsborg, Abdullai will have the responsibility of being Molde’s main main up top. To support him in attack, highly rated Liverpool youngster Trent Kone-Doherty was signed permanently for 750k. This will be Kone-Doherty’s first full season at senior level, having made 2 senior appearances for the Reds over the last two seasons. In defense, 23-year old CB Sivert Sira Hansen was signed from IK Start for 1M, Fredrik Kristensen Dahl was brought in for 430k, and a new keeper was signed from Anderlecht in Mads Kikkenborg. This should be a fun attacking side to watch this season, and I do think they have everything they need to get back up into the European spots this season.
Rosenborg BK:
Rosenborg has made some significant cash following their 7th placed finish last season. Wonderkid Sverre Halseth Nypan went to Manchester City for 15M euro, while young RW Marius Broholm moved to Lille for 6M, and keeper Sander Tangvik was bought by Hamburger SV for 2.6M. Starting ST Noah Holm was sold to Brann for 1.3M, while veterans Ole Saeter and Erlend Dahl Reitan left on free transfers.
After signing Slovak David Duris during last season to boost their attack, Rosenborg have found an interesting loan signing at ST: Amin Chiakha, a 19-year old Algerian-Danish player from Copenhagen. In midfield, 2M was spent on 20-year old Danish midfielder Mads Bomholt, a very promising chance-creator coming off of a strong season with Aalborg BK in the Danish 2nd tier. Johan Bakke was signed for a 400k fee to join Bomholt in midfield from Strømsgodset, while veteran RB Jonas Svensson returned home from Besiktas on a free. Also interesting is the return of Leopold Wahlstedt to Norway. While playing for Odds BK, Wahlstedt was THE standout keeper in the Eliteserien, before a move to Blackburn Rovers didn’t quite pan out. After two seasons with Aarhus GF in Denmark, Wahlstedt is returning to the Eliteserien. This should help to replace Tangvik in net, though it remains to be seen if Rosenborg’s new outfield signings can replace the talent they lost. I think Rosenborg’s final league position could vary considerably: I would be surprised to see them in the Top 3, and I would also be surprised to see them in the bottom half.
With the budget acquired from their sales very much not depleted, Rosenborg can continue looking to rebuild themselves back to their former glory, when they were the class of Norwegian football in the 80’s and 90’s.
Sandefjord:
After a 5th place finish in last year’s Eliteserien, Sandefjord are looking to build upon it and challenge for Europe this year.
New signings Nikolaj Moller (ST) and Jakob Vester (CM) were brought in from Dundee United and Viborg, respectively, while new CB Xander Lambrix joined from TOP Oss in the Dutch 2nd tier. Sandefjord have also invested in another homegrown CB in Håkon Krogelien, a 21 year old defender signed from Jerv. A relatively unknown quantity as of right now, Sandefjord have one to watch with their singing of 18-year old Ghanaian winger Foster Apetorgbor. Apetorgbor will get his first experience playing in Europe with Sandefjord, and with the amount of talented attacking players who have come from Africa through the Eliteserien in recent years, I will certainly be keeping an eye on Foster Apetorgbor.
In terms of sales, Stefán Ingi Sigurdarson (ST), Christopher Cheng (LB), Martin Gjone (CB), and Loris Mettler (AM) were all sold for a combined total of almost 4M euros. Sigurdarson and Cheng were two of Sandefjord’s top players last season. Sandefjord only spent ~1.2M on new signings, meaning they still have money in the budget for a summer signing without having to sell any players. I think a top 4 position will be difficult to achieve, but certainly possible if Sandefjord have a good season.
Sarpsborg 08:
Some might say that the “08” in Sarpsborg 08 represents their league finishing position after the last four years. Sarpsborg has finished 8th, 8th, 9th, and 9th, very consistently staying in the mid-table while never being in a real relegation battle. English manager Martin Foyston was appointed just before the end of last season, after getting Osters IF promoted to the Allsvenskan over two seasons there. Foyston achieved an average of 1.7 points per game after joining Sarpsborg, which if pro-rated over a full season, would have been good enough for 5th place in the Eliteserien. This could be the start of Sarpsborg 08’s journey out of mid-table into fighting for European places.
24-year old winger Noa Williams was signed from Kongsvinger for 500k euro, after a 15 goal contribution season in the OBOS-ligaen. Champions League experience was also added to the squad with 26 year old midfielder Chris “Chriso” Kouakou, from Qarabağ. Veteran CB Sigurd Rosted was brought back home from Toronto FC in MLS. Finally, promising young Belgian-Moroccan winger Camil Mmaee was signed from Maastricht after he recorded 8 goal contributions in just over 1000 minutes played in the Eerste Divisie. I genuinely like the transfer business done by Sarpsborg 08. If they can continue their progress under Foyston this season, I could very well see them finishing in a Top 6 spot.
IK Start:
After a 2nd place finish in the OBOS-ligaen last year, IK Start earned promotion back to the Eliteserien after a 5-season absence. Experience was their priority in transfers, adding a trio of 28-year old players: Erlend Dahl Reitan (RB, Rosenborg), Kristoffer Tønnessen (LB, Lillestrom), and Erlend Segberg (DM, Trapani). Jesper Cornelius, a 24-year old striker from Lyngby BK in Denmark, was also added, alongside Valencia youth product Alexander Gurendal, a 20-year old LW. We might even see Jasper Torkildsen (GK) make his Elitserien debut for Start after a loan to Stromsgodset last year.
Regular CB Sivert Sira Hansen joined Molde FK for a 1M euro fee, as Molde looked to snap up the 23 year old CB with hopes he could improve further. Start did not see many more departures though, leaving them with a bolstered squad. I believe Start will likely be in a relegation battle, although I will not pick them as a surefire favourite to go down.
Tromsø IL:
Tromsø are also enjoying the Northern-Norway era of dominance in the Eliteserien, recording their second 3rd-place finish of the past three seasons. After seeing top prospect Runar Norheim sold to Nordsjaelland for 2.25M, as well as Jakob Napoleon Romsaas moving to Royal Charleroi for 1.5M, Tromsø brought in CB Mathias Tønnessen from KFUM Oslo for 1.1M, 19-year old AM Troy Nyhammer from Haugesund for 930k, Jesper Grundt (CM, 23-years old) from Kongsvinger for 850k, and young Swedish-Thai RB Alexander Thongla-lad Warneryd from Västerås SK for 750k. Four more transfer fees were paid out, along with the free signing of Mauritanian national team goalkeeper Abderrahmane Sarr. Tromsø have a proven track record of both scouting and developing African players in the Eliteserien, and Sarr joins Mamour Ndiaye as another exciting African keeper in Norway. A major factor in Tromsø’s season is whether they will be able to keep Abubacarr Sedi Kinteh at the club amidst interest from the likes of Chelsea and Manchester United. Kinteh has been one of the best CB’s in the league since he joined and will be moving on soon, it’s just a question of when.
Overall, this Tromsø squad has been improved from the team that finished 3rd last season, and I think they will yet again finish on the podium in a Top 3 place.
Vålerenga IF:
Vålerenga were relatively quiet in the transfer market after their 6th place finish last season. Their only paid signing was Magnus Westergaard, a 27-year old Danish CM joining from Wycombe Wanderers for 400k euro. Veteran ST Ole Saeter joins from Rosenborg, bringing valuable experience and at 29, some good years left in him. Considering how many of the teams around them in the table have really tried to improve their squads, it feels like Vålerenga have regressed slightly in comparison. While they should be good for a top half finish again, I would be surprised to see them competing for European places by the time the season comes to a close.
Viking FK:
Last (alphabetically), but certainly not least, are the reigning champions Viking. They have returned almost their entire squad from last season, while adding a few new signings to the mix. Not wanting to disrupt the team chemistry there was, Viking have kept the incoming players to a minimum.
L’ubomir Belko, the 23-year old Slovak keeper out of Zilina, was signed to be the new starter for a 1M fee. As is usual, some of the best Slovak players can be acquired for relatively low fees. From their academy in Africa (named “African Viking”), 18-year old LW Kelvin Frimpong is making the move to the Eliteserien for a 200k fee. Another unknown quantity as of right now, it is always exciting to see a player get his first chance in Europe while playing in the Eliteserien. The start of several strong careers has happened in Norway. As for departures, it is mostly just goalkeeper Kristoffer Klaesson, who moves to newly promoted Aalesund in a bid to help keep them up. Without any key player departures, Viking will be a threat for the league again this season.
Their biggest challenge may well be balancing the Champions League qualifying rounds with league play once the summer arrives. With the offset of the Norwegian schedule relative to UEFA competitions, the qualifying rounds for UEFA competitions begin midway through the Eliteserien season. This has proven to be a hurdle for almost every Norwegian club who competes in European competitions, and will be especially if Viking qualify for one of the UEFA competitions proper. If Viking go out early in the UEFA qualifying rounds, then they will have little to no fixture congestion this season, unlike what Bodø/Glimt will be dealing with. This was a main factor in their title win last year, having gone out of European competition early while Glimt were making a UEL semi-final run, then playing UCL League Phase matches during the 2025 Eliteserien season.
Overall Prediction:
Here are my general predictions for which clubs might be battling for different positions in the Eliteserien this season.
Teams Competing for Title: Bodø/Glimt, Viking, Tromsø
Teams Competing for Europe (Top 4): Brann, Molde, Rosenborg, Frederikstad, Sandefjord
Teams Battling Relegation: Kristiansund, Aalesund, Start, KFUM
The Eliteserien remains a very exciting league to follow, with local Scandinavian talent combining with promising international players to create a great environment to find new talent in. After Glimt’s UCL success this year, there will likely be more eyes on the Eliteserien than ever before this year, and you know who to go to if you need to know more. As always any scouting requests or questions can be directed by email to scouting.futbird@gmail.com.
Hello all, its time for another PPP article! After keeping an eye on how Smajlović continued to perform well this year, we dispatched Patrick to take a more in depth look at Sandefjord’s standout Bosnian-Swedish CB. Article below, enjoy!
-LM
Who is Zinedin Smajlović?
Given the name from France International, Zinedine Zidane, Zinedin Smajlović was born in Stockholm on December 20th, 2003, and might have inherited a little extra skill from his name. Smajlović spent 3 years of his youth career at 5 clubs – Starting from 2019 at FC Djursholm, then 2020 in IFK Stocksund, 2021 transferred to IK Frej, and lastly, went to one of Sweden’s top quality youth academies in IF Brommapojkarna in 2022. IF Brommapojkarna was once an affiliate with Manchester United back in the late 90s, but now is affiliated with the Red Devils rivals, Manchester City. After a year at IF Brommapojkarna, Smajlović left on a free to Täby FK in the Division 2 Norra Svealand. At Täby FK, Zinedin pushed on, and after only 13 appearances (including 5 goals) was bought for 100k Euros by Serie A side Lecce in January 2024. After nearly two years of no game time with one year at Serie A side Lecce and then loaned out to Serie B side Lecco the next, Smajlović left Italia, and found himself back in the Nordic lands of Norway shortly after. Sandvikens IF in the second division of Sweden, signed Smajlović in July 2024, and after playing 10 stellar appearances and bagging 2 goals, Sandefjord said enough is enough and signed the youngster on a free transfer in January of 2025. Now less than a year later, Smajlović has established himself in the Eliteserien being a top player. Smajlović is the 2nd highest average rated CB in the league (behind Bodø’s Odin Bjørtuft) and has the 10th Highest average player rating in the league. Smajlović is determined, powerful and undeniably ready for the next step.
Sandefjord:
Sandefjord and their tactical setup has them playing a more possessive game where they look to open up defences in the midfield and work the ball into the box. Evidenced by Sandefjord having the 4th highest average team possession at 53.8% in the Eliteserien. Additionally, Sandefjord are currently 4th in accurate passes per match made with 418.8 and the 4th most accurate long balls per match at 29.6. All this while only maintaining an average of touches in the opposition box at 10th with 644, and just 45% of what Norwegian giants Bodø/Glimt have. Sandefjord enforce a mentality to attack the first opening you see and move forward towards the goal.
Technical Ability:
Zinedin Smajlović is forming himself into a very modern center half that utilizes his passing ability, composure, and his bravery to make progressive/overlapping runs to help keep the ball moving forward. Zinedin contributes heavily to this style with his composure and creativity on the ball. Zinedin has an 88.84 touches per90 showing that they use him as a backbone in build up. Over the span of his last 6 games where Smajlović played, here are his touches compared to his other teammates.
Smajlović touches in the last 6 games:
111 (Tied for most with Ottosson) vs Haugesund 3-2 W
117 (most on team) vs Bryne 1-0 W
69 (Most on team / only had 40% possession as a team) vs Molde 3-1 W
86 (second on team by 5 touches) / 46% team possession) vs Frederikstad 1-1 D
104 (Third on team, 16 behind first, and 6 behind second) vs Rosenborg 2-2 D
97 (most on team / 44% team possession) vs Tromso 1-0 W
Smajlović and his long-range passing are where he thrives. As mentioned previously, Sandefjord are 4th in accurate long balls per match. Smajlović contributes with 5.50 accurate long balls per90. Smajlović contributes to roughly 18.5% of their accurate long balls a game. Smajlović favours the stretch passing into the half spaces where his wingers seem to occupy frequently. If the long ball is not available, Smajlović recycles between his CB partner Kristiansen, and their DM Ottosson in a classic 2-3-5 build up. If Smajlović can’t open up the center of the pitch, he looks to switch the ball to the opposite wing to quickly create advantageous positions for his teammates to move forward towards the net. He showed the ability to read the play 1-2 steps ahead of his opposition when creating.
Examples of Passing:
Note: All screenshots were captured from FCompsTV – YouTube
After faking body position to look like he was passing to his wide teammate, Smajlović identifies opposition LB is being drawn out wide, and takes advantage of the space with a beautiful chip pass into the 18-yard box.
Zinedin shapes to pass to his right, dragging the defenders over, before finding a pass through the lines to his teammate in space to turn and progress:
This is where Smajlović’s creativity helps with Sandefjord’s chance creation and in showing that they are a possessive and attacking team. He’s confident and a daring player. Does not matter who is there, he wants to go forward. Zinedin likes putting himself in situations where he can force the opposition to make difficult decisions in defensive coverage. Whether this is to draw in the press, or to shift the defensive coverage to open up new passing lanes, he will find a way to manipulate the defence. Smajlović has some interesting stats to go off with his 1.08 Successful Dribbles per90, 75.8% dribble success rate per90 and fouls won per90 being at 0.90. Implementing the second nature of looking to go forward with confidence and having him be the focal point of where the ball needs to be. One man army pro (COD reference for the nerds). It’s a good sign that Sandefjord regularly require a lot out of Smajlović, showing he has experience being a main focal point.
Example of Dribbling:
Smajlović wins the ball back in his 18-yard box, before pushing past 3 defenders and finding his teammate in open space:
Athleticism & Defence
Some of the most interesting traits from Zinedin Smajlović that make his technical ability stand out more, are his size and athleticism. At 21 years old, Smajlović stands tall at 191 CM (6’3”). He has a big strong frame, good speed and runs hard, while surprisingly agile for his dominant size. He quickly jumps forward after winning the ball, and is always thinking about being progressive and proactive. Not only does Smajlović has the foundation to develop further, but he also already has the man-like strength, with great leaping ability. Sandefjord tend to use Smajlović as one of their main aerial threats when attacking from set pieces. Smajlović often finds himself getting good touches in the box due to it and has been very effective with getting shots on net. Smajlović has 1.42 touches in opposition box per90, along with his 1.20 shots per90 and 0.22 shots on target per90. He has great balance and finds himself constantly winning duels along with his great strength and balance he possesses. Not only that, but with his speed, he has impressive recovery ability. Smajlović for some defensive stats that stand out are his 5.63 Duels won per90, 63.3% Duels won per90, and his astounding 5.20 recoveries per90. Sandefjord instill a high line and press system for their team. Smajlović is the stopper of the CB pairing between him and Kristiansen. Smajlović has an instinct to play on the front foot, which also applies to his defensive mentality. He is almost both the unstoppable force and the immovable object. Smajlović attempts many duels a match but wins the majority of them. His strength alone can separate the opposition from the ball but also demonstrates good timing in the tackle. Besides having the technical ability to tackle, his high-level reading of the game allows him to constantly interrupt the flow of the opposition.
Examples of Defensive Play:
Smajlović does a great job reading that the pass will be received by the opposition player in the half space. He starts to move as the pass is being fired in, strongly separates the man from the ball, and starts the counter:
Smajlović is running back to defend a counter attack and is in a 1v1 position. Smajlović does an amazing job to angle the opposition towards the byline and on an angle to get a low quality shot. Smajlović gets him exactly where he wants on the byline and blocks his shot:
Set Pieces:
Sandefjord tend to use Smajlović as one of their main aerial threats when attacking from set pieces. The cross comes in and Smajlović’s teammates drag and block their man markers towards the front post, to get Smajlović in a 1v1 aerial duel where he converts for a goal:
Refinement & Dedication
Zinedin Smajlović is having a tremendous season and has been making a name for himself in the Eliteserien. At just 21 years old, doing what he does, it is remarkable. Smajlović is refining his game and tends to keep improving as we have seen from him over time. Reiterating on the point for one of Smajlović’s best traits, is also one of his weaknesses now. His dedication and bravery he possesses to always leave it all on the pitch is strong, which makes him play harder, but sometimes too hard. Smajlović has the most yellow cards on his team with 5 and is tied for most on his team for red cards with 1. It is interesting as well, considering that Smajlović has the second lowest fouls committed per90 on his team with 0.7. He tackles well, but when he fouls, he overpowers his man a little too much. Additionally, Sandefjord foul the second most in the Eliteserien at 13.0 fouls per match. On top of that, they have the third most yellow cards in the Eliteserien at 53, tied for the most red cards in the Eliteserien at 3, and lastly, conceded the most penalties in the Eliteserien at 11. As a team, that is not great. Even being carded as much as they are, they have conceded the 6th fewest goals against at 40. If those penalties were cut in half, it’d put them tied for top three for goals against. Once Smajlović refines his defensive craft a little more, he can be the best CB in the Eliteserien.
Zinedin Smajlović is destined for greatness. Already on the right path, Sandefjord seem to be unlocking his full potential. It may not be long before we see him make the leap to a top Eliteserien side, or even to one of Europe’s elite leagues. With his dedication, drive, and decisiveness, Smajlović isn’t just a name to watch, but he’s a future star in the making. The question now is.. how far can he go?
With the Eliteserien season winding down in 2025 (they play from March – early December), Brann are hosting the champions in the biggest match of the final stretch. Currently, Viking lead the table by a single point, with both Glimt and Brann having a game in hand:
Table Source: Wikipedia
(Before we move on, I just want to offer my sincere condolences to the Haugesund supporters, this was a difficult season).
Technically, the current Top 4 all could still win the Eliteserien with only 4/5 matches left to play, although realistically Brann and Tromsø require considerable chokes from Bodø/Glimt and Viking to get their hands on the title. This has been a very competitive season in Norway, and whoever claims the title will have deserved it.
With Glimt currently one point behind Viking with the game in hand, the goal differential could end up being important and is currently in Bodø’s favour to the tune of +15 GD. It would be unlikely but not impossible for Viking to overcome this deficit, but their path to becoming champions most likely involves winning on points outright. The Viking faithful will be cheering on Brann today and hoping the Bergen-based side can deliver a crushing blow to the Northern Norwegians’ title hopes.
Brann have won the last two times Glimt came to town, 4-1 and 4-2. In fact, Bodø have just two league wins at Brann in the past 5 seasons, showing it is a difficult away trip. Today will be no different, but with the stakes so high, history won’t be deciding the outcome today. Expect to see a battle on the pitch. Young Brann CB standout Eivind Helland will have Kasper Høgh to deal with today in what should be a very interesting duel, with both players likely on their way to bigger leagues soon.
You would have to go back to the August 31 match against Sandefjord to find the last time that Bodø/Glimt did NOT score within the first 15 minutes of the match. They will certainly try to come out in Bergen and take control early. If Brann can start prepared and weather the initial storm, then it will be a close battle until full-time, though Glimt have shown on multiple occasions that they can essentially win a match in the first half-hour.
A win for Bodø/Glimt, and they’re 2 points clear with 4 matches to play and a superior GD. Three wins and a draw from their final matches would almost certainly be enough to win the title in that case (provided Viking don’t make up the 15-goal gap in GD). This would make it 5 titles in 6 years for Kjetil Knutsen and Bodø/Glimt, against all expectations. Celebrating the 50th anniversary of northern Norway’s first ever cup-winning side this season (the 1975 Bodø/Glimt Norwegian Cup Winners, who set the foundation for today’s success), the club’s 5th title would be a perfect ending for the Glimt supporters.
However, as of right now, Viking are still on top and should be taken very seriously. They have not lost in the league since July and have only dropped 4 points in that same period of time. Their remaining fixtures are Strømsgodset (A), HamKam (H), Frederikstad (A), and Vålerenga (H). The most difficult fixture is the away trip to Frederikstad, who have been punching above their weight since returning to the Eliteserien a couple years ago. Viking would need Bodø to drop a full 3 points in their final fixtures to have a chance at the title, but expect them to do their part and force Bodø to achieve maximum remaining points.
The importance of today’s match cannot be understated, not just for this season but for the general landscape of Norwegian football. Viking have not won the Eliteserien since 1991 despite regularly finishing in the Top 5. Brann, who are looking to kickstart a final push for title contention today with a win against Bodø, have not won the Eliteserien since 2007, and have been runners-up to Glimt for the past two seasons. A Glimt win, and they move joint 4th place in all-time Eliteserien titles alongside Molde, Lillestrøm, and Vålerenga despite winning their first in 2020. Regardless of outcome, this has been a very interesting Eliteserien season and I can’t wait to watch the match today!
Hello all, it’s past time for an update on the Norwegian Eliteserien, as we are about halfway through the 2025 season. Let’s take a look at the table to start.
So to start off near the bottom, it is definitely worth noting the success that both of the newly promoted teams have found this season: Valerenga and Bryne. Valerenga suffered a shock relegation in the 2023 season, before they won the OBOS-ligaen in 2024 and returned to Norway’s top flight. A key player for them has been Cameroonian Fidel Brice Ambina in midfield. Ambina was purchased by Valerenga ahead of their 2024 season in the 2nd tier, and after helping them return to the Eliteserien, has been their best player. Moving from Cape Town City FC to Norway, Fidel Brice Ambina has potential to improve significantly, at only 23 years old. Bryne has also found themselves with a significant cushion over the relegation zone, with 18 points from 14 matches.
Stromsgodset and Haugesund are having truly terrible seasons so far, accumulating just 6 and 2 points, respectively. A miraculous turnaround would be required for either of these teams to escape relegation. The only real standout player here who is showing that he could have a future in the Eliteserien even if his team gets relegated is Marko Lawk Farji. The 21 year old Iraqi winger became a first team regular for Stromsgodset last season, and has been performing quite well for a forward on a struggling team.
Molde is a surprising name to see so close to the bottom of the table, although they did sell several key players from last year such as Kristoffer Haugen (to Viking). Of their 5 wins, 4 came against teams in the bottom 6 of the table, along with a surprising 3-0 win over Brann. Molde will likely not be in danger of automatic relegation, but they could well end up in the relegation playoff place if they do not improve performances soon. Molde have been in the top division of Norway since 2008, and a relegation would be a real shock to the division.
There are definitely signs that the difference between the Eliteserien and the best teams in the OBOS-ligaen (2nd division) is narrowing. I am happy to see both KFUM Oslo and Frederikstad, both teams promoted in recent years, becoming stable Eliteserien clubs. Both clubs are still in position to challenge for European places, and Frederikstad have proved to be a serious challenge for the top teams in the league.
Sandefjord is also having a great season for their standards. They have not finished in the top 10 of the Eliteserien since 2009, and are on pace to do just that this season. They have assembled a very fun young squad, with key players this season such as Christopher Cheng at LB (23), Stefan Ingi Sgurdarson at ST (24), Evangelos Patoulidis on the RW (23), and Zinedin Smaljovic at CB (21). This is a promising approach for Sandefjord, who will be able to use a strong league finish this year to make significant profit on player sales.
Rosenborg have rebounded from their disappointing year last season, and are firmly in European contention now. Sander Tangvik is having a strong season in goal, Tomas Nemcik from Slovakia is enjoying a breakout season in the defensive line as well. Ole Selnaes is the heartbeat of this team though, and Rosenborg generally go as Selnaes goes, especially after wonderkid Sverre Halseth Nypan was sold to Manchester City. If his form stays strong, then Rosenborg will have a strong push for the European places, although they will have to balance Conference League qualifiers with the league matches.
Bodø/Glimt have had significant fixture congestion over the first half of the season, due to their outstanding run to the Europa League semi-finals. This period saw them drop 8 points, enough for Glimt to be significantly behind the league leaders. Knutsen’s men look to be returning to fitness and form now though, having tallied three strong wins in a row over Sandefjord, Frederikstad, and Viking. Brann (A), Rosenborg (A), and Tromso (H) are the biggest fixtures remaining for Glimt and their final league position. As of today, they are 7 points back of leaders Viking, with 3 games in hand, and the league title is within their control if they win their matches. New reinforcements have joined in the summer window, most notably Magnus Riisnaes from Valerenga, a very exciting young winger.
Brann are pushing for the title yet again, after finishing 2nd the past two seasons. Young striker Aune Heggebo, who came through their academy, had another very good start to the season, but looks to have been sold to West Bromwich Albion in the English Championship. This is a player I’ve known for a long time, and do see potential in. Brann will have to hope that Bard Finne, their veteran striker, can fill the void left by Heggebo. Finne scored 16 league goals in the 2022 and 2023 seasons, but only managed 6 last year, and is underperforming his xG significantly. If Brann do not reinvest some of the ~8M fee for Heggebo, they may be resigning themselves to another year of missing out on the Eliteserien title.
Tromsø is performing much better than expected this season. Runar Norheim is a very exciting talent; the 20 year old LWB has been one of Tromsø’s best players this year and a major part of the team’s chance creation. Leo Cornic has found his form again after leaving Rosenborg, and is enjoying a good season opposite Norheim at RWB. If there’s a name you want to remember though, it is Abubacarr Sedi Kinteh. The 18 year old Gambian CB is playing his first season in Europe, and performing incredibly well for Tromsø. Kinteh is a ball playing defender, who dribbles with the ball well and creates chances. From a tactics perspective, this team is interesting, as in their 5-3-2, the midfield does not actually do that much chance creation, more focused on winning the ball and retaining possession. The wingbacks and overlapping CB’s provide a significant amount of Tromsø’s chance creation. I may publish a more in depth look at their tactics following the derby match vs. Glimt.
Finally, the league leaders Viking. While having played more matches than the other clubs (both Tromso and Bodo/Glimt could pass Viking for 1st by winning their 3 games in hand), Viking still deserve credit for putting themselves in this position. They will also be playing in European qualifiers starting this week, which could impact their league form. Viking still have the ability to push on and win the league, but it will require sacrificing the European games to do so. That is a tough decision, as the European competition prize money for reaching the League Phase and further is serious money for Norwegian clubs.
If you look at the table overall, keep an eye on the number of games played by each club. The points gap from 1st place to 6th place could be a mere 3-4 points in a few weeks’ time. This is setting up to be one of the most exciting finishes to a title race in Norway, as there have not been so many teams in contention for the title at the halfway point in past seasons. Keep an eye out for it!
If you do want to watch Eliteserien matches, they are free to stream on OneFootball.com, with a free account (this is not a promo, it’s just how I watch matches). Here are some fixtures to mark on your calendar if you want to see some of the best matches the Eliteserien has!
Fixtures to Watch For:
27th July 2025: Rosenborg v. Tromsø
9th August 2025: Bodø/Glimt v. Tromsø
10th August 2025: Sandefjord v. Viking
16th August 2025: Tromsø v. Brann
24th August 2025: Brann v. Frederikstad
31st August 2025: Sandefjord v. Bodø/Glimt ; Viking v. Rosenborg
21st September 2025: Rosenborg v. Bodø/Glimt
28th September 2025: Brann v. Bodø/Glimt
19th October 2025: Tromsø v. Viking
22nd November 2025: Tromsø v. Rosenborg
30th November 2025: Bodø/Glimt v. Frederikstad
That’s all for the mid-season review/end of season preview! I hope to keep spreading interest in the Eliteserien and Norwegian football in general.
I have a new name to add to your watchlist: 16 year old Danish striker Mikkel Bro Hansen. A product of the Aarhus GF academy (the same club that former Glimt star Albert Grønbaek came from), and Danish youth international, Bro Hansen recently signed with Bodø/Glimt in February and has been immediately integrated into the first team. Moving from youth teams, to training with the Glimt first team every day will be very beneficial to Hansen’s development, and Glimt is a club that he can start to reach his full potential at.
The Bodø/Glimt manager, Kjetil Knutsen, takes a general philosophical approach of “marginal improvements, every day.” This means he does not set specific targets or goals for his players to try (or possibly fail) to reach. Instead he wants his players to simply focus on making improvements every day, focusing on the process instead of the end goal. This type of environment will be key to help Bro Hansen develop while also growing in confidence, without an unrealistic progression goal to try and reach.
So far, the young striker has featured for the Glimt senior team in two cup matches so far this season. While both were against lower tier sides in Norway, these were still fully grown men, and the 16 year old striker was given the start in both matches. He delivered, scoring a hat trick + assist in each match. While not the most physically imposing centre-forward (this is to be expected, as he is still just a child), Mikkel Bro Hansen has already shown a high level of competence in many of the mental areas that are necessary to be an elite striker, things many strikers often do not develop until later in their careers. His sense of when to make a run and WHERE to make that run is excellent, some of the best I’ve seen for a player this age. This allowed him to totally dominate opponents who were held significant physical advantages over him. Bro Hansen is a very fluid type of centre-forward, who does like to drop deeper and link up with his teammates. This suits Glimt’s style of football, another reason this transfer is likely to be beneficial to him. He is a smart player who knows how to play to his strengths, and with where he’s at now at 16, I believe he has all the potential to become a elite centre-forward at a top European club. Bro Hansen has the talent, and seems to have the ambition required to reach his full potential. Leaving home and joining the Glimt first team at 16 is no simple task for a very young player, but the plan Glimt have presented to him for his development made it worthwhile. If Bro Hansen reaches his full potential, it isn’t a question of if Bodø/Glimt can keep hold of him, but rather when a club with more than 10x the budget of Bodø come knocking.
In the end this move will only be a win-win for Bodø. Top European clubs likely will not try to make a move for Bro Hansen until he turns 18 (which will happen near the end of the January 2027 transfer window). If his development skyrockets at Glimt, we could see him making a move this early. However, as many other players have shown at Glimt, it would not hurt his career to stay in northern Norway for another year or two, playing regular European football with Bodø. It is impossible to know with certainty how good a player this young could become. There are so many factors affecting a player’s development, on and off the pitch, that all we can really do is track their progress year by year and re-evaluate regularly. Given what we’ve seen so far, Mikkel Bro Hansen has everything he needs to become one of Denmark’s finest centre-forwards in their nation’s proud history, and even if he doesn’t reach his full potential, will almost certainly carve out a very respectable career in Europe at the top level.
In the Europa League semi-final against Tottenham (the first leg starts today), Bro Hansen is coming into the match as Glimt’s only legitimate backup striker, as Andreas Helmersen, the usual sub for Kasper Høgh, is suspended for the first leg. Obviously Knutsen will not want to harm his development by throwing him into a game-state that isn’t set up for him to succeed. However, this is the most likely chance we will have to see Bro Hansen make his top-level debut for Glimt, and that is exciting.
Mikkel Bro Hansen. Remember the name, he is One to Watch.
You might remember I posted an article talking about the growing sense of discontent with Video Assistant Referees (VAR) amongst Norwegian football fans. Ever since VAR was implemented only a few years ago, the “VAR out” movement has grown steadily. A study of the 2024 season’s VAR was released by the Eliteserien, Norway’s top division of football, that showed the VAR was not as effective as it needed to be. VAR review times were extremely long, including one insane VAR review that took over 10 minutes. The calls made by VAR, when reviewed by the refereeing association after the matches, were not correct nearly enough. With this report, the facts were there for the Norwegian football fans to decide for themselves: is VAR worth keeping?
The major cons of VAR are the impact to the match day experience. The joy of celebrating a goal with fellow fans has been replaced by a hesitant wait to see if VAR will intervene and request a review. The lengthy wait times experienced in the Eliteserien caused consistent delays in the match. Fans were unhappy seeing the effects VAR had on their experience at the stadium. These very fans have voiced this disapproval in a significant way recently: at each club’s annual supporter’s group meeting, there was a vote held on whether or not they were in support of telling the club to vote in favour of removing VAR. Of the 32 clubs that made up Norway’s Topfotball (the top 2 divisions of Norwegian football), 19 of them voted in favour of removing VAR in Norwegian domestic competitions. While some clubs, Tromso, for example, openly appealed to their supporters to vote in favour of keeping VAR, their reasons for doing so were somewhat apparent. In the first season VAR was implemented in Norway, Tromso recorded their best ever league finish in club history. Coincidence? Perhaps.
Now VAR, in an ideal world where the vast majority of the calls it makes are correct, would be a welcome addition to any league. That is provided that the VAR review times are not extremely lengthy. Realistically, VAR should be aiming for a standard where they can complete their review within the period of time following a goal where play is stopped for celebrations and moving back to the centre circle to restart. So by this, I mean 30-90 seconds following the ball entering the net. If they are unable to definitively show that the call made on the field was incorrect within that time frame, then the call on the field stands. This would strike a good balance between being able to correct obviously incorrect calls, but to not ruin the matchday experience by delaying the game to check if a player is 1cm offside. (In the spirit of the offsides rule anyways, 1cm offside isn’t really offside. Its purpose is to stop players “cherry-picking” far behind the defence). However, that’s just my thoughts.
For now, I believe that if a league doesn’t have the budget to properly implement a quick and effective VAR system that can get the vast majority of the calls made correct, then the impact to the matchday experience shouldn’t be impacted with the addition of VAR. Norwegian fans seem to feel the same, but do their votes mean that VAR will be abolished? Not quite yet. This matter now goes to the Norwegian Football Federation (NFF), who will be faced with the choice of showing significant improvements to VAR, or abolishing it from the league entirely.
As someone who watches a lot of Norwegian football, the matchday atmosphere is really special. Fans sing and play music for the full 90 minutes, in some nostalgic style stadiums that rarely clear 15k capacity. Given the effectiveness of VAR that’s been shown in Norway, I think they would be better off removing VAR and preserving the atmosphere in the stadiums.
There is an interesting story coming out of Norway in the past few weeks, a real movement from the supporters groups to abolish VAR in Norwegian football. Now I’ll admit, it’s been a difficult story to research, as many of the Norwegian newspapers put their articles behind paywalls, and I do not speak Norwegian! A fair amount of translating went into this, but here’s what I know so far.
VAR was introduced to Norwegian football before the 2023 season. The Norwegian season runs from April to December, so we are approaching the start of the second year with VAR in Norwegian football. When VAR was introduced, it was done so immediately and without any consultation of the clubs or supporters, which the latter did not take kindly to. In fact, Norwegian football fans were so against VAR that they wanted to boycott the 2022 World Cup, as it was the first that VAR would be implemented in. Last season, the supporters groups of over 70 clubs organized a protest against VAR over two match weeks, where every match started with 15 minutes of silence from the crowd. As the 2024 season approaches, the frustrations with VAR have only seemed to grow, culminating in a motion that is being voted on by all Norwegian clubs to “work to abolish the use of VAR in Norwegian football”. The main reasons that Norwegian supporters are against VAR are the aforementioned way that VAR was brought into Norwegian football, as well as the impact on matchday experiences. The Eliteserien, Norway’s top division, does not have a global, or even European TV deal, with games being broadcast on Norwegian TV alone. This means that some of the biggest reasons VAR was wanted in leagues such as the Premier League do not apply in Norway. The Premier League is the most globally viewed league in world football. Therefore, every incorrect refereeing decision that fans are shown replay after replay of is scrutinized on a much larger scale, and the need for VAR to prevent those clear errors increases. It is important to understand the difference in perspective for a fan watching in a stadium vs. one watching at home on the television. When you are attending a match live, you will not see the extended replays that get shown on television broadcasts, and therefore an incorrect referee decision is much less obvious. Referee error is part of the game of football, and I don’t think any football fan would be in favour of a hypothetical robot referee that cannot make an error. For this reason, the larger an audience a league has on TV broadcasts, the more obvious refereeing errors become, and the more necessary VAR becomes. The Eliteserien is only broadcast within Norway, and as a result the matchday crowd become a much larger proportion of the total viewers of any given match. The matchday experience can be dulled by long VAR delays, anyone who watches the Premier League knows what I mean, and fans have every right to want fewer delays in the matches. Having the feeling of pure joy when your team scores taken away because you have to wait and make sure there isn’t going to be a VAR review has been one of the worst impacts of VAR’s inclusion in modern football, but how many times has this happened in Norway?
Based on an information newsletter circulated to the supporters of all Norwegian Football Federation (NFF) clubs taking part in the vote to begin removing VAR from the Norwegian game, I was able to find some useful statistics from the 2023 Eliteserien season. For context, an Eliteserien season is 30 matches long, with 16 clubs; this means there are 240 matches played in total.
1,662: Number of situations evaluated by VAR in the 2023 season. Of these situations:
1,304 (78.5%): situations evaluated immediately without any delay of game
358 (21.5%): situations checked more closely, requiring some delay, of these:
294 (82.1%): cases VAR determined the on-field referee was correct
55 (15.4%): cases VAR corrected the on-field referee’s mistake
9 (2.5%): cases VAR made the incorrect decision
Of all of the situations evaluated by VAR in the 2023 Eliteserien season, only 358 required any delay in the match, for an average of 1.5 per match. However, the longest delays were cases VAR corrected the on-field referee’s mistake. The NFF released the statistics for this too, showing that of the 55 situations VAR corrected a mistake, the on-field ref did not need to check the video screen on 25 occasions, which took an average of 48 seconds to review. For the remaining 30 occasions where the on-field ref did need to check the video screen, they lasted an average of 2 minutes and 2 seconds in delay. This truly does not seem like much of an impact on match proceedings, and compared to all other European competitions, Norway did in fact have the least amount of VAR interventions in the 2023 season.
Now I’m not a huge fan of how VAR has been implemented in many leagues, especially in England, where it seems like referees are now defaulting to letting the VAR make the decision when they aren’t 100% sure instead of potentially getting their decision overturned. The purpose of VAR when it was introduced around the world was to overturn “clear and obvious error”: a linesman missing a player 5 yards offside, the referee missing a clear violent act worthy of a booking, the ball crossing the goal line but the referee calling it out. If these criteria were kept to, we should see low numbers of VAR interventions across Europe and no extended VAR reviews: if it’s a clear and obvious error, it shouldn’t take 5-10 minutes to determine so!
Now I mentioned earlier the impact VAR has had on goal celebrations in the stadium, so how did VAR impact the goals in the Eliteserien last year? Of the 748 goals scored, 140 were studied more closely. That is almost 20% of the goals scored, but of those 140 reviews, 110 of them were completed without any delay to the match (before the team’s celebrations ended). Only 30 goals of the 748 scored last season had VAR reviews that required a delay of the game, with an average wait time of 29 seconds. About 1 in 25 goals required a VAR delay of approximately 30 seconds to confirm the correct decision, that looks like minimal impact to me. A refereeing decision was overturned by VAR once every 4.36 matches played.
What gives the NFF’s support of VAR credibility in my opinion is that they admit it’s shortcomings and have set out a solid plan to improve VAR’s use going forward. In this document I translated, the NFF point out one instance in Matchweek 15 of the 2023 season, in a match between Odd and Vålerenga, where a VAR review took nearly 7 minutes. This was immediately deemed unacceptable by the NFF for its impact on the match and the supporters, and changes were made ensuring a VAR delay of this length did not occur again for the rest of the season. The NFF also point out 9 occasions last year where VAR made the incorrect decision: 2 red cards incorrectly given, 2 goals that should not have stood, 3 penalties incorrectly given for handball, and 2 penalties incorrectly given for tackling. This is an average of one incorrect VAR decision for every 185 VAR reviews, well within the acceptable bounds of human error.
The last part from the NFF’s document to mention is the main proposed changes for the future use of VAR in Norway.
Strive for a maximum VAR review time of 2 minutes
Generally reduce the use of VAR, especially times the on-field referee must check the video screen
Increase the number of VAR cameras in each stadium to a minimum of 6
Ask assistant referees to flag clear offsides more often, rather than letting the play develop and relying on VAR to call offside
At the end of each season, both internal and external evaluations of the VAR system must be carried out, and Norway’s handling of VAR must be assessed compared to other nations
In the future, to consider the VAR technology specifically aimed at offsides and goal-line situations
Establish a long term dialogue around VAR with the NFF clubs and supporters
This is very promising to me, and shows that the NFF is thinking in the right way when it comes to improving VAR and the match experience. There are several key changes that will improve the match experience and reduce delays, not to mention the change in referee development in Norway moving forward. The NFF decided to develop VAR referees separately from on-field referees, meaning each referee will be dedicated to one or the other. Just like how the best on-field referees get given more games, the best VAR referees will be given more situations to review. The reasons for the supporters’ displeasure are clearly understood here. That being said, it is hard to tell what impact this credibility to VAR will have on the vote. Many supporters do not care if VAR has had a lesser impact in Norway than other countries, they want it gone, not reduced. So far, the supporters groups of the following clubs have voted in favour of the motion that their clubs should work towards abolishing VAR in Norway: Rosenborg BK, SK Brann, Vålerenga IF, Lillestrøm SK, Strømsgodset IF, Stabaek, and IK Start. In Rosenborg, Brann, Vålerenga, and Lillestrøm, some of the biggest clubs in Norway with the largest supporter bases have voted to remove VAR. On the flipside, the boards of several clubs have released statements in favour of VAR urging their supporters groups to vote no to the motion. In the most entertaining fashion, Tromso IL’s board released a statement saying they are in favour of VAR largely in part to the team achieving an all-time best finish of 3rd in the Eliteserien in the first season with VAR. They want their supporters to vote no to the motion, but the vote has not taken place yet just like in nearby Bodo, who’s supporters group vote will happen on this coming Monday. The clubs who’s supporters groups have voted against the motion to remove VAR (many due to pressure from the club board) are: Viking, Odds BK, Molde FK, Kristiansund BK, and Aalesund FK. The most influential member here is Molde being in favour of VAR.
Over the next few weeks the rest of the supporters groups should vote on this issue, and we will see what the consensus is! VAR will continue in the Eliteserien through the 2024 season, so any possible changes would be in effect for the 2025 season. This could be the start of a larger movement to bring the leagues with grassroots origins back to those roots. At the end of the day, football is a place many fans go to celebrate in the good times, and commiserate in the bad times. Sometimes those human emotions matter more than getting every call inch-perfect. I’m not saying to remove VAR from the biggest competitions in world football, but maybe a fan going to watch his local club in Norway doesn’t want VAR telling them when they can and can’t feel emotions. Just something to think about.
Thanks for reading, hope this has inspired a deeper thought on VAR and how we should be using it.
Time flies, it feels like yesterday that I was writing my Eliteserien PRE-view article, excited for the season to start. I did my best to predict how this season would end up, but as always in football, there are unpredictable twists and turns around every corner! The squads of players that I based my predictions on were not always the same squads that finished the season, with some surprising sales of the Eliteserien’s most dominant players. Teams I thought were showing some promise really underperformed this year, and there were also some unexpectedly high finishes for clubs like Brann, Tromsø, and Strømsgodset! I’ll be going through all of the action from up north this year in my 2023 Eliteserien Review. Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoy!
Part 1: The Story
Before I can get too far into the finer details, the story of the 2023 season must be shared. Bodø/Glimt are your 2023 Eliteserien champions! I won’t try to hide my joy at this, being a Glimt fan myself, but I will speak without bias here. Through the first half of the season, Bodø/Glimt were flying and looked untouchable. 13 wins, 2 draws and only a single loss coming in Matchweek 12 vs. Strømsgodset through their first 16 matches and boasting a +27 goal differential. Amahl Pellegrino was in fine form again this campaign, producing several goal of the season candidates from his wide variety of strikes this season to lead the way. The scoring was spread out for Glimt however, with Faris tallying 15 goals, and the midfield duo of Albert Grønbaek and Ulrik Saltnes combining for 15 goals between them.
At the midway point of the season, Bodø/Glimt held a 6 point lead over Viking in 2nd place, with Tromsø, Molde, and Brann close behind. The title race would become more intriguing when the European qualifiers began for the clubs competing in them: in Matchweek 16 and 17, the leaders Glimt lost back to back games, after having only lost 1 in their first twelve. These losses were to Tromsø and Viking, who were sitting in 2nd and 3rd place waiting for an opportunity to take the league lead. Viking did just this, taking 1st place from Bodø for the first time all season!
Following their win over Glimt, Viking went on to claim 13 points from their next possible 15 to maintain 1st position going into Matchweek 24, with the two northern teams close by. In Matchweek 25 however, Viking’s title challenge came to a crashing halt vs. Tromsø with a 3-4 loss, thanks to a 94′ winning goal from Yaw Paintsil. This allowed Bodø/Glimt, who were midway through qualifying out of their UEFA Conference League group, to retake top spot, where they never looked back. Viking would not be able to regain their fine form from earlier in the season, going on to lose their next two matches and drop out of the title race, leaving it to be contested between Bodø/Glimt, Tromsø, and Brann.
Tromsø picked up Viking’s momentum, adding a 4-1 win over Molde in their following game to pass Viking, but then had their own title hopes dashed by a 0-1 home loss to Strømsgodset, leaving SK Brann as the final team with a chance to take the title from Bodø/Glimt. With 4 games to play, a shocking draw against Sandefjord for Brann meant that Glimt had a 9 point lead over Brann, and the two teams would play on the penultimate match week of the season in what could have be a title deciding match. It COULD have been a title deciding match, if Bodø dropped points in the 2 games prior. The must win matches for the yellow flash were against Stabaek and Aalesund, the two teams who ended up being automatically relegated in 15th and 16th places. A 4-0 away win at Stabaek set up a home game vs Aalesund with a chance to secure the Eliteserien trophy. The Aalesund keeper, veteran Sten Michael Grytebust, had nearly 2 xG on target prevented in the match and did everything he could to get a result. However, his heroics were not enough, as a Nikolai Hopland own goal was enough for Bodø/Glimt to take a 1-0 win at home and celebrate winning their 3rd title in 4 years in front of the Aspmyra fans. If you’ve only been paying attention to Norwegian football in recent years, you’d be forgiven for thinking that Bodø/Glimt have always been a dominant force. This is most certainly not the case, as Glimt was playing in the 2nd division of Norwegian football as recently as the 2017 season. In 6 years since reaching the Eliteserien, Glimt have earned 3 league titles and finished in 2nd place twice.
The work done by Kjetil Knutsen here cannot be understated, as he has helped take a relatively small club to a domestic powerhouse who can challenge even the best clubs in Europe (don’t forget that the great Jose Mourinho’s worst ever match he managed, in his own opinion, was his 6-1 defeat at Aspmyra to Glimt). Despite losing their best midfielder, Hugo Vetlesen, after 11 matches played to Club Brugge, Bodø/Glimt always looked a strong favorite for this title and were able to avoid any shock defeats to finish the job. I’ve embedded a lovely video from Morten Mella (thank you for this, Morten), showing the scenes of celebration from Bodø/Glimt’s final home game of the Eliteserien season.
Part 2: The Good, The Bad, and the Final Table
Here we can see the final league table from the 2023 Eliteserien. Glimt finished with a 9 point gap over Brann and Tromsø, who could only be separated by goal difference. The top 3 finishers in the Eliteserien are rewarded with UEFA qualification spots: for the champions, a spot in the UCL qualifiers, and for the 2nd and 3rd place teams, a spot in the Conference League qualifiers. The final UEFA qualification spot (Europa League) goes to the winner of the domestic cup, the NM Cupen, or the next highest placed team if the cup winners also won the league. This year’s NM Cupen final was contested between Bodø/Glimt and Molde. A win for Glimt would mean that Brann receives the Europa League qualification spot, and the final UECL qualifying spot would go to 4th place Viking. A win for Molde would salvage what they surely considered to be a disappointing season and reward them with the Europa League qualification spot. In the end, Molde would end up winners on an 89′ goal in a 1-0 fixture, securing themselves a spot in next years Europa League qualifiers.
This result was the final blow to Viking fans’ dreams of Europe after what has to be considered an overachieving season for them, regardless of the heartbreaking finish. Viking were the team to pace Glimt through the majority of the season, only to have their hard work undone with a run of 7 points through their final 8 matches, culminating in a 5-1 loss to Rosenborg at home on the final day of the season to ensure they would finish 4th. For a team that spent more weeks on top of the table than any other club not named Glimt, Viking will feel they deserved more from this season.
Another club that had a more successful season than previously anticipated was Strømsgodset, who turned out to be the giant-killers of the Eliteserien this year, earning them a 7th place finish! Generally considered as more of a “player-development” club within Norway, Strømsgodset showed that they have the ability to win right now. Against this years’ top 5 teams, Strømsgodset scored 11 goals, while only conceding 9 and earning 14 points from a possible 30! Strømsgodset only lost a single home game to the top 5 teams this year, being a 1-0 loss to Tromsø, and earning 10/15 points from these home matches. For a team that didn’t look the strongest on paper, especially considering that their brightest prospect, Tobias Gulliksen, was sold to Bodø/Glimt midseason, Strømsgodset should be very proud of how they represented themselves this season and could look to build on this success with some smart transfers.
Not all clubs had an overachieving season though. Three clubs who finished significantly below where I thought they were capable of are Rosenborg, Odds, and Vålerenga, the latter actually finishing in the relegation playoff place! Often as is the case in a league like the Eliteserien, a club’s best players will receive offers to move on to bigger leagues fairly quickly after arriving in Norway at times. The main reason for Odds mediocre finish was the sale of their starting keeper Leopold Wahlstedt to Blackburn Rovers. Wahlstedt was, in my opinion, the best keeper in the Eliteserien this season before he was sold, and this showed in Odds results. After conceding 19 goals in 17 matches with Wahlstedt in net, Odds went on to concede 25 goals in the remaining 13 matches following Wahlstedt’s departure. That’s an increase in goals conceded per game from 1.12 to 1.92, showing Wahlstedt’s quality and consistency between the sticks.
An honorable mention for underperformance has to go to Molde, included here as they suffered from the same player sales that Odds did, except Molde sold both of their best players. Ola Brynhildsen, Molde’s rapid centre forward who scored 2 goals on Bodø with his team down a man to secure a 2-2 draw against all odds, was sold to FC Midtjylland for 2.5M euros. Sivert Mannsverk, the anchor of Molde’s midfield and a young defensive midfielder with all the potential in the world was picked up by Ajax for a 6M euro fee. Their most consistent CB of last season, Birk Risa, was sold to New York City in MLS for only 1M euros. To top off the (in my opinion) bad transfer business, Molde let their top defensive prospect go to Wolfsburg for free! Anders Børset, a 17 year old defender who can play at CB or LB, looked to have sky-high potential, and could have likely been sold for millions of Euros if they kept him at the club. All of this culminated in a very unimpressive 5th place finish in the Eliteserien, with the NM Cup win being the only positive from Molde’s season. Perhaps we will see them spend some of this money before next season to revamp the squad!
The final two underachievers from this year on my list are Rosenborg and Vålerenga. Rosenborg went into this season having sold two of their best forwards in Casper Tengstedt and Emil Ceide. Reinforcements were minimal, in the form of Canadian Jayden Nelson to replace Ceide, and Ole Selnaes brought in from FC Zurich to bolster midfield. The goalscoring numbers certainly took a hit with the loss of Tengstedt, with Rosenborg’s two main strikers, Ole Christian Saeter and Isak Snaer Thorvaldsson combining for 13 goals in the season. Tied for 2nd place on Rosenborg for goals scored is 16 year old midfielder Sverre Halseth Nypan.
It is both a negative and positive that he is one of Rosenborg’s top scorers. A negative because no club should be relying on a 16 year old midfielder to be your 2nd leading scorer, but a positive because this is a 16 year old midfielder who is the club’s 2nd leading scorer this season! I cannot say enough positives about Sverre Halseth Nypan, he is an incredible player to watch. Possessing a calmness and composure far beyond his age, Nypan looked extremely comfortable playing in the Eliteserien this year, playing in 23 matches and contributing 5 goals and an assist. I don’t believe we’ve seen a player so young seem at ease playing in the Eliteserien since Martin Ødegaard made his debut at 13. Nypan also dribbles with his preferred left foot, and the way he moves on the pitch is drawing more comparisons to Ødegaard than just his young age at debut. While Rosenborg shouldn’t be pleased with a 9th place finish, as one of Norway’s biggest and richest clubs, they should have the resources to rebuild their squad around their young talisman for the next few seasons.
The most shocking result of this season was Vålerenga IF being relegated to the OBOS-ligaen, the 2nd tier of Norwegian football, after finishing 14th in the Eliteserien, and then losing the promotion playoff to Kristiansund in heartbreaking fashion. After securing a 2-0 away win in the first leg, Vålerenga returned home and held their 2 goal lead for 75 minutes, before 76′ and 82′ goals from Kristiansund tied the series on aggregate and forced extra time. After extra time could not find a winner, the promotion playoff was decided on penalties, where every penalty kick was converted until Vålerenga’s final penalty, when Christian Dahle Borchgrevink was unable to convert his spot kick, sending Kristiansund up to the Eliteserien for the 2024 season. I expect an immediate return to the Eliteserien for Vålerenga next year following this unthinkable relegation, but nothing is certain in football!
Part 3: The Top Players
The 2023 Eliteserien player of the season in my opinion, has to be Amahl Pellegrino. In 29 matches, Pellegrino scored 24 goals and created 14 assists, breaking the Bodø/Glimt club record for most goal involvements in a season, set by Philip Zinckernagel in Bodø’s record setting 2020 season (19G + 18A). For context, Glimt scored 103 goals in the 2020 season, and in the 2023 season they scored 78. This means while Zinckernagel was a part of 36% of the team’s total goals, Pellegrino was a part of a whopping 49% of Bodø/Glimt’s goals this year in the Eliteserien. He scored in every way possible too, from taking corner kicks, volleys, even a strike from his own half that caught the keeper out. Pellegrino was pure magic for Bodø yet again, following up his 25G, 10A season last year with another stellar campaign. Enjoy this beautiful first touch and volley to the top-right corner vs Stabaek from earlier this season.
🇳🇴😍 Amahl Pellegrino (32) with an incredible goal for Bodø/Glimt over the weekend! The forward bagged a hat-trick vs Stabæk in this game. pic.twitter.com/Z3m0hlviLQ
The only player who was able to keep pace with Pellegrino for goals scored was Lillestrøm’s Akor Adams, who unfortunately for Lillestrøm, was sold to Montpellier midway through the season after he had produced 15 goals and 2 assists through 15 games in the Eliteserien. Bard Finne from Brann was the 2nd top goal scorer with 16, and Pellegrino’s teammate Faris Moumbagna was 3rd with 15 goals himself. Other Glimt standouts from this season were Albert Grønbaek and Patrick Berg, who were consistently performing at the level of a top top midfielder in this league. Grønbaek stepped into Hugo Vetlesen’s shoes seamlessly. In his first full season in the Eliteserien, Grønbaek produced 9 goals and 7 assists while being the team’s main threat to progress the ball through midfield, and will be subject to plenty of transfer rumours in the January window ahead of the 2024 season. It is likely that Glimt will not be able to hold on to the talented young Dane for much longer, with interest from clubs such as Leicester City in the EFL Championship, and Charlotte FC in the MLS on a potential 8M euro move.
As previously mentioned with Sverre Halseth Nypan, this was a year for breakout talents! Odds found themselves an exciting young winger in Faniel Tewelde, who only turned 17 years old in September and had the quality to play 20 matches for Odds this season. Tewelde and Nypan are by far the most advanced players of their age in the Eliteserien right now. Sverre Halseth Nypan looks every bit a successor to Martin Ødegaard in the national team, receiving his first U18’s callup this year, while Tewelde has played 11 matches for Norway’s U17’s this year and will soon follow Nypan.
Part 4: Conclusion
In the end, the 2023 Eliteserien title was contested mostly by 4 clubs: Bodø/Glimt, Viking, Tromsø, and Brann. Viking were the 2nd best club in Norway for the first half of the season, had their best form from Matchweeks 18 to 25 to lead the Eliteserien table during that period, before falling off to a 4th place finish. Tromsø and Brann did not look like much threat early on in the season due to Glimt’s impressive points pace, but the mid-season struggles due to Conference League fixture congestion lead to Glimt dropping points and making the title race more intriguing. The league was decided on Matchweek 28, when Bodø/Glimt won 1-0 at Aspmyra in front of their fans, and celebrated a historic 3rd title. Despite having to rebuild the squad nearly every year, Kjetil Knutsen has proven himself a top manager with Bodø, and if he isn’t lured away by the excitement of bigger leagues, the sky is the limit for this “village team” from northern Norway. I’ll be back soon with more football content from other areas of the world as the Norwegian domestic game takes a break, but will be sure to bring you all of the Eliteserien transfers and predictions ahead of the 2024 season. Thank you to everyone who has ready any of my content covering the Eliteserien this year, I truly appreciate it and will look to continue providing better analysis and insights into this wonderful league.
Welcome back football fans, I hope you’re ready to take a trip to Norway! All teams in the Eliteserien have played at least 10 games now, so I’d like to take a look at how the season is shaping up, the biggest surprises (both good and bad), and what might happen in the remaining 20 games. If you’d like to check out my Eliteserien season preview and see where I’ve been proven wrong, here is the link: (https://futbird.com/2023/03/18/2023-norway-eliteserien-preview/).
The League Table
Matches Played
W
D
L
GF
GA
GD
Points
Bodo/Glimt
11
10
1
0
32
9
23
31
Brann
12
6
3
3
24
15
9
21
Viking
11
6
2
3
26
20
6
20
Tromso
10
6
2
2
14
10
4
20
Lillestrom
10
5
2
3
18
16
2
17
Molde
11
5
1
5
24
16
8
16
Sarpsborg
10
4
3
3
12
11
1
15
Stabaek
10
4
3
3
14
17
-3
15
Rosenborg
11
3
4
4
14
15
-1
13
Odd
11
3
4
4
8
11
-3
13
Haugesund
10
3
3
4
10
15
-5
12
Stromsgodset
10
3
2
5
11
14
-3
11
Valerenga
10
3
1
6
14
17
-3
10
Sandefjord
10
2
3
5
12
15
-3
9
HamKam
10
2
1
7
10
26
-16
7
Aalesund
11
1
1
9
7
23
-16
4
Bodø/Glimt, Flying High!
What a start to the season it has been for the yellow flash from the North! 31 points from their opening 11 matches and a +23 goal difference has put Bodø firmly on top of the table with a 10 point lead over Brann in 2nd, who were the one team to take points from Bodø so far. That match required a bit of magic from Amahl Pellegrino to overturn a 0-2 halftime deficit and draw the match 2-2. It is also worth noting that Bodø started several substitutes in that match (and quickly realized their mistake, making changes and getting a point back). Speaking of Pellegrino, the left-winger has been in phenomenal form this season, seemingly scoring goal-of-the-season candidates one after another. “Pelle” as he is affectionately called at the Aspmyra, is leading the Eliteserien in goals… AND assists. With 12G and 5A through 11 games, this inspired form has been the driving catalyst behind Bodø’s early success. Brann’s Bard Finne is the closest competitor, amassing 13 goal contributions in his first 12 matches. New signing Faris Moumbagna has settled in well, notching 8 goals so far this campaign and proving to be the type of physical target forward who can create space for his teammates to score. Finally, the preferred midfield trio of Albert Gronbaek, Patrick Berg, and Hugo Vetlesen is unmatched by any team in the Eliteserien in my opinion, providing an ever-consistent base for the team to build on. The only imperfection this season was going out of the Norwegian Cup to Lillestrøm much earlier than expected, but as a result there will be less fixture congestion for the remainder of the year. Bodø/Glimt have been playing some beautiful football, and are strong favorites for the title this season. Who might be able to stop them?
The Contenders
Surprisingly, my pre-season title contenders have not lived up to expectations this season, Molde sit 15 points back in 6th place, Rosenborg are in 9th, and Vålerenga are flirting with relegation, sitting just one point clear of the playoff place. Accordingly, I owe some more respect to a few squads I had thought would be mid-table this season, but could put together a title challenge. Brann and Tromso are the two teams I believe have a chance to compete with Bodø/Glimt. Brann have proven themselves capable, taking points off of Bodø at Aspmyra, but also have losses to Odd and Sarpsborg which they will not be happy about. Also, a 0-0 draw at home to relegation candidates Sandefjord will not give reason for overconfidence. While I think Brann have showed enough to be considered a contender, they will need to clean up their inconsistencies if they are to keep pace with Bodø/Glimt.
Tromso are the more intriguing side in the race this year. Bodø’s northern rivals, Tromso have more motivation than any other side to prevent Bodø/Glimt from claiming their 3rd Eliteserien title in 4 years. They have also gotten off to a great start, able to move to 2nd in the table and 8 points behind Glimt by winning their next match. Suffering the same fate as their northern rivals in the Norwegian Cup (being knocked out by Lillestrøm), Tromso rebounded with a strong run of league form, only losing to Odd and Bodø/Glimt in their first 10 matches. In their upcoming schedule, we will see them tested: Starting on July 2nd, Tromso go through a run of having to face Lillestrøm twice, Rosenborg, Brann, and Bodø/Glimt all in a span of 6 matches. By the time I’ve written the Matchweek 20 Update, we will know whether Tromso has what it takes to be a contender this season.
Biggest Surprises
Good: Newly Promoted Teams – both of last seasons First Division clubs, Brann and Stabaek, have both performed much better than expected in their first season back in the Eliteserien, sitting in 2nd and 8th respectively at the time of writing. I thought the loss of Gift Orban would hurt Stabaek more than it has, and while their 14 league goals this season isn’t mind-blowing by any means, it is very respectable for a newly promoted side.
Bad: Last Season’s Success Stories – last season Odd and Valerenga finished in 5th and 6th place, 1 point apart. This year, Odd has plummeted to 10th place after their inconsistent start. Having beaten Brann, Tromso, and Molde this year, it is confusing to also see big losses to Sandefjord and Sarpsborg. In their wins, Odd are showing why they finished 5th last season, but when they play the worse teams in the league, their performance level has dropped catastrophically. (Sandefjord have scored 12 goals this season. 4 of them came in one game vs Odd).
Meanwhile Vålerenga is in an even worse place: 1 point from the relegation playoff. It has been an abysmal start for Vålerenga, who have only beaten Rosenborg, HamKam, and Aalesund; the latter two clubs being in the bottom 2 places on the table. The main issue for Vålerenga is their lack of scoring. No player has more than 3 goals so far this season, and their best chance creator has a combined xG + xA of 4.9 through 10 matches. When your statistically best player is creating around half of an expected team goal per match, your attack will struggle. For comparison, league leaders Bodø/Glimt have 4 players who have created as much or more xG + xA. If Vålerenga cannot turn around one of their worst starts in years, they may find themselves in trouble by the business end of the season.
Conclusion
If your eyes haven’t opened enough yet to read the whole article, here’s a quick summary: this year’s Eliteserien is Bodø/Glimt’s to lose, led by Amahl Pellegrino in the form of his life. Brann and Stabaek are overachieving so far, while Rosenborg, Odd, and Vålerenga are the biggest disappointments. The next 10 games will be crucial to determine how the league will shape up this season, so tune in! As always, thanks for stopping by.
futbird 