– It is incomprehensible that we have now replaced the September window with July. Now we have September off instead of July, but then the league has started again. This is what Barcelona and national team player Caroline Graham Hansen tells news before the meeting with Finland and the Netherlands in the last two qualifying matches for next year’s European Championship. She and the other foreign professionals should actually have had a long-awaited holiday this summer after the season for club teams was over. This was not the case after Uefa came up with the set-up for the qualifying matches for next year’s EC. Several of the national team players and news’s football expert believe this could have consequences for the players, who have their first summer in several years without a championship. You can watch Finland – Norway on NRK2 at 18.00 on Friday. – The holiday we need will not be something Graham Hansen thinks it is good that the problem is addressed. MEET THE PRESS: National team manager Gemma Grainger and Caroline Graham Hansen. Photo: BILDBYRÅN – There’s almost no time off, so it’s important to get that break in the summer so you can relax, train and prepare for the next season. It is unfortunate and stupid for us, she believes. Ingrid Syrstad Engen, who usually plays in Barcelona together with Graham Hansen, says that the national team friends have discussed the matter within the team. – We have talked about why it happens and what is the reason for it. When it’s the middle of the holidays, you have to make sure you train and stay in shape to play matches. This means that the holiday we need will not be available, she says. Teammate Guro Reiten thinks the set-up is crazy, but is clear that they only have to deal with Uefa’s set-up. – I think that this particular collection was poorly timed, and I think they can do it differently in the future. We just have to turn it around and enjoy the weeks and train the weeks we get, because we don’t want to come here unprepared, says Reiten. PREPARATION: Guro Reiten and the rest of the national team during training in Finnish Turku on Thursday. Photo: BILDBYRÅN news has contacted Uefa and presented the criticism from the national team players. They believe that the introduction of the Nations League and the new qualifying format for the EC was an important step for women’s national football teams – This change was wanted and approved by all European national federations, and it was clear from the beginning that 18 match days are necessary to play this the qualification, and thus every window in Fifa’s international match calendar had to be used, says Uefa. news’s football expert Carl-Erik Torp believes that the match schedule is no less scary for those who play in the top league in Norway. – NOT OPTIMAL: news’s football expert Carl-Erik Torp Photo: Birk Pessl-Kleiven / news – The schedule is very tight and complicated, and there are assessments that must be made both ways. It is far from optimal and it is a recipe for disaster and damages what is happening now. There is a tight match schedule leading up to the national team gathering, and with an excessively high load, the risk increases. It goes a long way beyond our national team, he says. – Can’t lose Now Finland is the host in the match that can take Norway one notch closer to next year’s European Football Championship. news’s football expert is excited about what he refers to as “the most important international match in a long time”. – For those who play in Norway, it has been an incredibly tough match schedule, and especially in the last month. While, for example, Syrstad Engen, who has had a long holiday after the Champions League, goes into these games with very tired legs and little surplus, he says and adds: – The way this group of players gathers now is not optimal. There are only two European Championship qualifying matches left, and Norway must finish number one or two to go directly to the championship. – Norway cannot lose, and must most likely win to have the direct places to the EC next year. It is the most important national team match for a long time, says Torp about the Finland match on Friday. Published 12.07.2024, at 06.17
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– Recipe for disaster – news Sport – Sports news, results and broadcasting schedule
