It was a simple starting point before Bodø/Glimt at home against Ajax. Win, or disappear from the league. The fight was not going to be as easy as the starting point. After two goals and two red cards, extra time was needed to separate the teams at Aspmyra. And in extra time, despite a lot of Glimt dominance, Ajax drew the longest straw and won 1–2 at Aspmyra. Difference between little Bodø and Amsterdam Glimt coach Kjetil Knutsen was very disappointed after the match. – It’s tough here. We have enough opportunities. It is an absolutely decisive situation here. That the referee is able to award a free kick to the goalkeeper in that situation is completely unimaginable, Knutsen told Viaplay. Knutsen refers to a situation where Brede Moe is awarded a free kick against him after an attack on the goalkeeper, while the Glimt players called for hands from Ajax. He continued: – We just have to acknowledge that; there is a difference between being from little Bodø and Ajax from Amsterdam. Kjetil Knutsen says Glimt should still be able to decide the match, considering how many chances they had. Photo: Mats Torbergsen / NTB During the press conference after the end of the match, Knutsen again questions whether there is a difference between big and small clubs. – Why does a referee choose to judge an attack on the goalkeeper in that situation? It is completely incomprehensible to me. Then there must be respect for the bigger clubs. I can’t explain it in any other way. When asked by a foreign journalist whether it should have been judged differently, Knutsen is blunt: – Yes, of course. It’s a penalty and a red card. It’s not good enough. It’s a red card every day of the week, and I think you’ll agree with me. The sport about the crazy showdown in Bodø. Started where he left off A week ago, it looked for a long time that Glimt was going to achieve perhaps the club’s greatest feat in history. They scored both once and twice before it came to overtime. And the man behind the 2-2 goal in Amsterdam, Steven Berghuis, was not done. Steven Berghuis scored seven minutes into overtime in the Netherlands, and again in Bodø. Photo: NTB It was admittedly Glimt that started best. At first, only the German Ramaj stood in the way of the recently returned Håkon Evjen putting the ball in the goal, before the well islanders Saltnes was stopped by the same man. Then it was clear for Ajax captain Berghuis. After 34 minutes, he broke a poor support pass from Håkon Evjen. Brian Brobbey got out on the edge and got a pass to the other man – who knocked the ball into the goal. – I will of course wear it on my coat, but it is not the first or last in my career, Håkon Evjen told Viaplay during the break. Berghuis could cheer, Grønbæk and Bjørkan the opposite. Photo: Mats Torbergsen / NTB After the goal, both Hauge, Bjørkan and Evjen had great opportunities to equalise. But it was just almost, almost and almost. Ajax could go into the break with a lead, thanks in large part to goalkeeper Diant Ramaj. Ramaj had a brilliant first half for Ajax. Photo: Daniel Hong Hansen / news Red cards and chance bonanza After the break, Glimt went straight into attack. And the man who minutes earlier took the blame for 0-1, Håkon Evjen, had a brilliant opportunity when he was on his way through after two minutes. But the Croatian Josip Sutalo stopped him effectively, and illegally. Greek Tasos Sidiropoulos gives a red card to Josip Sutalo after a VAR check. Photo: Mats Torbergsen / NTB Then came the chances for Glimt in a row: 50′ Grønbæk flicked the ball past Ramaj, but was saved on the line by Sosa. 51′ Berg headed on goal and Borna Sosa stopped the ball with his hand, but Ajax saved a situation in front which is a free kick after VAR. 54′ Berg with a shot on the crossbar. The hero for Bodø/Glimt in Amsterdam was Albert Grønbæk when he scored two goals. Today it did not respond as well, and after 65 minutes he, like Sutalo, had to take an early shower. Red card after two yellow cards for the Dane. – It is of course heavy and disappointing to stand here. It’s a feeling I’d rather not try again. I feel like I’m failing today. But I think the others should be praised for what they deliver, Grønbæk told Viaplay after the match. Many people from Amsterdam had traveled to Bodø to support Ajax. Photo: Mats Torbergsen / NTB Rescue in Bodøværingers The audience, those from Bodø, probably started to get a little nervous that it would end like a week ago. With a big anticlimax. The bodøværing, Patrick Berg, had other plans. From 22 metres, after receiving the ball from another Bodø player, Jens Petter Hauge, the national team player knocked the ball straight down the left and into the Ajax cage. Patrick Berg celebrates after 1–1. Photo: Mats Torbergsen / NTB The Glimt fans were also fired up. It didn’t get any less exciting when Ulrik Saltnes put the ball in the goal five minutes into overtime. He even thought he had made it 2–1 to the home team, but the goal was disallowed. Thus; extra time in Bodø. – How can you miss an open goal? In 90 minutes there were only two scores, but the opportunities were not there. The trend continued into the first extra period. Nino Zugelj was played through in the back room, and got past Ajax goalkeeper Ramaj. But with an open goal, the Slovenian kicked the ball into the stands. Nino Zugelj also picked up a yellow card in normal time after going late on goalkeeper Ramaj. Photo: Mats Torbergsen / NTB – How can you miss an open goal? We can’t afford that when it comes to making it to the round of 16, said news’s sports commentator Bjarne Brandal on the radio. He added: – There you should really only be able to roll the ball into the goal. Beyond the second extra period, there was little to be seen from Ajax. Glimt controlled most of it. Until Kenneth Taylor, right next to the away fans, tipped the ball into the cross from 15 metres. 1-2, six minutes before the end. The Ajax fans cheer with the players after 2–1. Photo: Mats Torbergsen / NTB Berg got a last chance at a free kick after 120 minutes played. The ball hit the crossbar, but like the vast majority of opportunities this evening, it was only almost. Thus it ended with a loss for Glimt against the Dutch stars. The Bodøværingen are thus out of the Serieligaen. Patrick Berg thanked the fans after the game. Photo: Mats Torbergsen / NTB – Ajax is a big club. But it’s a bit bitter right now, Glimt captain Patrick Berg told Viaplay after the match.
ttn-69
Bodø/Glimt lost against Ajax after two red cards and a bonanza of chances – news Nordland
