– It does not matter whether it is fair or unfair. It just goes to show that, out in Europe, it pays to be the best. This is what U21 national team manager Leif Gunnar Smerud says to news before Norway opens the championship with the first match against Switzerland on Thursday evening. – Got a black card Norway has got a base and plays all the group matches in Cluj, Romania, and Smerud says that the NFF noticed the consequences early on that the group opponents Italy, France and Switzerland are all better ranked. Both the selection of player hotels and training pitches during the EC is based on Uefa’s ranking, and Norway thus got to choose last. In the podcast “Our Best Men”, Smerud states that Norway “got the black pepper”. Leif Gunnar Smerud is excited before the EC breaks loose. Photo: Ludvig Thunman / BILDBYRÅN Especially when the NFF had to choose the national team’s base during the championship, it became a headache. Smerud explains: – When you travel to an EC, you are basically given some hotel options by Uefa. In that catalog there were six options. Three hotels were really good, two were not so good and the last one hadn’t been built yet, he tells news. – Was offside With three good hotels, and Norway with fourth choice, the NFF chose to think outside the box. – We were a bit offside, because we were not satisfied with the standard of the hotel we could take in that catalogue. Then we found another hotel, and it is in the middle of a shopping centre. But we live well with that. Then there is something for the boys to do between the games, reassures Smerud. The U21 national team lives here during the EC. news does not disclose the name of the hotel for security reasons. Photo: Haron Hussain / news Norway are ready for the U21 EC for the first time in ten years, and it is an excited group that has traveled to Romania. Smerud tells news that the gut feeling is very good before it all breaks loose with the first group match against Switzerland – a match many describe as a so-called “must win”. – There has been a long wait, so it will be good to finally get started. When you qualify in June last year, and it starts in June this year, it’s good that it’s getting closer, says the U21 national team manager. Norway has had a long precamp before the EC. Here from a training session in the days before the championship starts. Photo: Lars Eide / NTB – What we dream of Norway has ended up in a supposedly tough group with Switzerland, France and Italy. Smerud answers questions about Norway’s chances as follows: – In an EC, there are 14 teams that are qualified and two teams that have been there before (the host nations Romania and Georgia), so it is a tough level. We think it’s fantastic that we’ve managed to get there, I’m very proud of that, and the boys should be proud of that. We had met good nations anyway, and now we have an exciting group, he says. – What is the goal in the EC? – We have had a thorough round of this with the boys, and the aim is to appear as a positive and energetic group, who have both courage and determination in the game. We have no intention of going home until we have the feeling of having given everything we have, he says. Leif Gunnar Smerud thinks Norway can surprise in Romania. Photo: GEORG HOCHMUTH / AFP – Critical voices might say that it is defensive not to say that you have a goal to move on? – It is naturally a goal for every team in a championship to progress. But the goal for us is that we will leave all our strength in that pursuit, so we can count in the end. – Can surprise positively A little look at various bookmakers shows that there is generally little faith that Norway will advance from the group. Norway is one of the lowest-ranked teams, along with host nation Georgia, among others. Smerud takes it with crushing calm that his team seems to be big “underdogs”. – If you had asked most experts, they would have said that Norway, on all the parameters you are measured on, could just pack your swimming trunks and travel down without having much of a chance. But it’s football, it’s possible to surprise positively. This team has shown that it can fight with the best, says Smerud. Norway’s match against Switzerland kicks off on Thursday at 18.00 and is broadcast on news 1 (second half on news 2).
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