Here, Norway is at the top of Europe
Tuesday: Watch Nederland-Norge on TV 2 at 20.00
With a victory against the Netherlands in Rotterdam, Norway is guaranteed the smallest playoff. It can also hold for direct World Cup ticket depending on the result in Montenegro-Turkey.
Also a draw and loss can give a playoff if Norway gets a helping hand from Montenegro.
So far in the qualifiers, Norway has taken 18 points in nine games. Maybe not so interesting in itself, but on one statistic, Ståle Solbakken’s men are at the top of Europe.
– Has emerged as the leader
Norway has only conceded six goals in the nine matches. It gives an average of 0.66 setbacks. This is also much of the reason why Norway has a real opportunity to qualify for the World Cup in Qatar.
Taking into account that three of the six setbacks came against Turkey in Malaga, it says that Solbakken has done a formidable job of tightening up the Norwegian team.
– These are figures I think Ståle Solbakken is well satisfied with. It has been a great pleasure to see the Norwegian defenders, who have been solid defensively at the same time as they have contributed offensively. Then Stefan Strandberg has emerged as the leader we have longed for in the back rows. He has his limitations that stop, because he is not Usain Bolt. But he is incredibly smart, strong and good at talking to them around, says TV 2 expert Jesper Mathiesen.
Denmark is in a class of its own so far in the qualifiers. A poor setback in nine games gives an average of 0.11. This is followed by Italy, Switzerland and England. Norway is in 10th place, ahead of major nations such as Portugal, the Netherlands and Belgium.
See the top 10 listen at the bottom of the article!
Tuesday: The Netherlands – Norway
Tv2 play
Praises the midfield
Norway has done that with three different goalkeepers and five different midfielders. Against Latvia, it was Strandberg and Marius Lode who formed the center lock. Mathiesen believes that Andreas Hanche-Olsen will be made into Strandberg against the Netherlands.
– The Norwegian defense will have its toughest test tomorrow. One thing is to play against Latvia at Ullevaal. It will be something else against the Netherlands. The defense must function optimally if we are to have the opportunity to win, says the TV 2 expert, knowing that only Germany has scored more goals than the Netherlands in the qualifiers.
– It goes without saying that Norway gets its toughest test. What we have been through so far has been quite simple tasks compared to this. I also think the Norwegian midfield should be praised. Solbakken has always been good at making his layers look like a unit. We have been good at moving together, whether we have pushed high or low. Then it will be less trouble for the stoppers, says Mathiesen.
The national team has a lavish away statistics on the plane to the Netherlands on Monday. The previous loss was two years and almost eight months ago. Solbakken also has good memories from away trips in Europe. Under his leadership, FC Copenhagen passed Milan on the list of teams with the most matches in a row without conceding more than one goal in European tournaments.
– Solbakken has shown earlier with FCK that he thrives with matches where he is an underdog. I think he’s looking forward to the task that awaits tomorrow. The Netherlands has everything under pressure. Everyone expects Norway to move out of this qualifier without it becoming a championship. Well, Norway has been given a bonus opportunity, and I wish both players and coaches would love the tasks, says Mathiesen.
Layer |
Average setbacks |
Denmark |
0.11 |
Italy |
0.18 |
Switzerland |
0.18 |
England |
0.33 |
Croatia |
0.40 |
Germany |
0.40 |
France |
0.43 |
Russia |
0.60 |
Spain |
0.63 |
Norway |
0.66 |