The last time the Norwegian men’s national team registered three points in a qualifying match for the EC in March was back in 1999, when current national team manager Ståle Solbakken was among Norway’s eleven selected. Since then, six attempts have ended in a tie and three losses each. If you include Norway’s March matches in World Cup qualification, the numbers show eight losses, four draws and only two wins in 14 qualifying matches since 2000. They came against Montenegro and Gibraltar in 2021. – These are very heavy numbers that do not give any confidence going into two very important matches, begins news’s football expert Carl Erik Torp when he is presented with the figures. – What do you think is the reason for the numbers being so weak? – I think the answer is quite simple, and that is that it is during a period of the year where we are not in season here in Norway. In the past, there were many members of the national team who spent their club life in Norway. Now, however, it looks brighter considering that we have more players who are out in European clubs, play regularly and are in better shape, he points out. Overview of Norway’s European Championship qualifiers in March since 2000 (Norway’s goalscorers in brackets) March 24, 2007: Norway 1-2 Bosnia-Herzegovina (John Carew) March 28, 2007: Turkey 2-2 Norway (Simen Brenne, Martin Andresen) 26 March 2011: Norway 1-1 Denmark (Erik Huseklepp) March 28, 2015: Croatia 5-1 Norway (Alexander Tettey) March 23, 2019: Spain 2-1 Norway (Joshua King) March 26, 2019: Norway 3-3 Sweden (Bjørn Maars Johnsen, Joshua King, Ola Kamara) Believes history is an important part of the explanation When national team manager Ståle Solbakken presented the national team selection before the March matches against Spain and Georgia, he was clear that the dismal numbers are mainly due to two things: A story with many elite series players in the national team and a national team that has struggled a lot in periods regardless of the month. – There are a lot of good “stats” being built up here, Solbakken grins, before he continues: – In a historical perspective, it may be that March is a period where there have often been a number of elite league players who are not in season. In recent times, one can hope that it is all about coincidence. We haven’t been to very many good places since 2000, so it also has something to do with the fact that we simply haven’t been good enough, he points out. National team manager Ståle Solbakken will once again try to take Norway to an international championship. Photo: Rodrigo Freitas / NTB – An important factor The last time Norway played a qualifying match in March, the first eleven consisted exclusively of players who were in leagues outside Norway. However, that was not the case during the qualification for the European Championship in 2016. Former national team manager Nils Johan Semb, who had the main responsibility the last time Norway won an EC qualifying match in March, shares Torp and Solbakken’s opinion that the national team “suffered” for a long time because more people in the squad played club football in Norway. – If you look at it historically, it has something to do with it. I remember the away game against Croatia when we had several elite league players that you could clearly see were not in match shape, Semb tells news, before he continues: – In the period they had quite large estimates of elite league players, that was the most important explanation. It is a significant factor for the poor March results, he emphasizes. Several elite league players, including Vegard Forren (in the middle), played for Norway in the 5-1 loss away to Croatia in March 2015. Photo: Terje Pedersen / NTB Challenges with playing time in the back ranks In the meetings with Spain and Georgia, Stefan Strandberg ( Vålerenga) and Leo Østigård (Napoli) are strong candidates to make up Norway’s centre-back pair. The former is not starting his elite series season, while Østigård has not played for Napoli in Serie A since November. The last time Østigård was in action for Napoli was in the Italian Cup in mid-January. In total this season, there have so far been only 480 minutes of club football. By comparison, since September he has had 360 minutes with the Norwegian flag on his chest. Semb believes Norway’s biggest challenge will be organizing the defensive game. – There is a pair of centre-backs where one is out of season and the other plays very little for Napoli. It is a challenge, but not a crisis. After the meeting with the star-studded Spanish team, Strandberg, Østigård and the rest of the Norwegian defense will test themselves against one of Europe’s hottest attacking players, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia. A difficult away game, according to Semb. – Georgia is basically a much weaker team than Norway, but it is also a difficult away team. Sweden lost there in the previous qualifier to use it as an example. They have one of Europe’s most interesting players in the Napoli ace in Kvaratskhelia. Stefan Strandberg and Leo Skiri Østigård have several tough tasks to prepare for in the matches against Spain and Georgia. Photo: Fredrik Varfjell / NTB – Can’t afford to lose many points After the group win in the national league slipped away with losses against Slovenia and Serbia in the autumn, Norway are dependent on being among the top two in the qualification. Behind the big favorite Spain, it is expected that Norway, Georgia and Scotland will fight for 2nd place and the European Championship ticket to Germany. – The key is primarily to beat Georgia and not lose any points in that match. Against Spain away, you can handle a loss, and everything else is a bonus. I’m a bit of a conditional optimist. If they manage to come home with four points, then it’s brilliant, Semb asserts. In the two previous EC qualifiers, the Norwegian men’s national team has started with a loss. If the dream of the first championship since 2000 is to become a reality, Semb is clear that Norway must be on their toes from the start. – They must reverse the bad statistics and trend now to get off to a good start. There is no doubt about that. There aren’t that many points you can lose on the way to an EC play-off.
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Norway’s nightmare month – 24 years since the previous EC qualification victory in March – news Sport – Sports news, results and broadcast schedule
