European Cups 2008/09

[2mas]

A reprise of the last home match against Club Brugge would be fine for me.

• Rosenborg have played eight games against Belgian sides in total, winning two, drawing one and losing five. Of four home games against teams from Belgium, they have won two, drawn one and lost one.

• Club Brugge have also played eight games against Norwegian sides. Their record in those matches reads won four, drawn one, lost three. In Norway they have won one, drawn one and lost two.

Read more: Memories stir ahead of Group G opener

[Gerrit]

Well, tonight is the big game. We need to win this one, because getting points in St Etienne and Valencia wont be easy. To have no pressure, a win now against Brugge is crucial. I hope Hamren studied FCB well, especially their strikers Sonck and Akpala in great form right now and very easily score. Keeping them out of the match will be crucial although very difficult. I hope Steffen is fit again as we really rely on him for goals.

It will not be easy, not at all. Hopefully we can have a narrow win, anything 1-0 or 2-1 or so would be good for me. As long as we win. But I do fear the Bruges frontline.

And no, no mixed feelings here whatsoever. I never felt patriottic about my native Belgium, so I couldnt care less about the Belgian coefficient. I want Rosenborg to win, I have not the slightest emotional confusion about this. Playing Brugge is not different than playing FC Neftchi or Artmedia or so. We need to win this one.
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Rosenborg, forever pride of the North!

[Gerrit]

Not sure what to think of yesterdays game. I warned anyone that Bruges would be a tough nut to crack and that people should not underestimate them. In the end however, I was hoping for a narrow win. So to draw 0-0 only is disappointing, however I am more disappointed by our sterile play in the second half. With some bad luck Akpala or Clement had scored and we even lost, so in the end I am not even complaining that much about having a draw only. I wonder why Hamren waited so long to bring in more attacking power, and also I wonder why we played so sterile after having had several much better games recently (both domestic and in Europe). Inconsistency again.

Now nothing is lost but St Etienne is the winner of the day. I count on 6 points being a guarantee for qualification, so beating Bruges and Copenhagen would have been sufficient and take the pressure away from the games against St Etienne and Valencia. With the points lost against Bruges, we need to recover those either in France or against Valencia. If we then beat Copenhagen we still finish with 5 to 7 points, which should be enough to qualify for the next round. But after yesterday, if we want to have our fate in our own hands, we need a result against either St Etienne or Valencia as well. The pressure definitely rises after yesterdays draw.

Tettey, Sapara, Strand were decent, Jarstein without flaws. Defense was worrying at some points, and in front we used too many long balls. Also, as I said, an extra striker came in too late. I guess 0-0 was a fair result, I am disappointed but at the same time realise we could just as well have lost this game, so maybe the way we played is more disappointing than the actual result. Nothing is lost, but we need to play a lot better if we want to qualify.

That said, I warned for Akpala and Sonck and mainly Akpala was very dangerous indeed, I do think overall we did keep Sonck under control quite well. Of course we must be very lucky that Akpala could not score on that one cross and that the last minute header is not going in. So could have been worse than a draw, but a draw is not really helping us a lot neither.
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Rosenborg, forever pride of the North!

[2mas]

FCK should not have any chance qualifying after losing yesterday. Brugge will be over main rival.

I fear Brugge will meet a French team with six points in their next match, and maybe get one point "for free"; St. Etienne will be very pleased with seven points after two away matches.

If so, Brugge most certainly will beat FCK in the last match.

Conclusion: Rosenborg most likely have to get five points. Four won't do in group G. Three of those should come in Copenhagen.

By the way: Iversen rues missed chance

[2mas]

Olympique Marseille vs. AS Saint-Étienne

Although Marseille’s record of two wins in eleven fixtures is actually worse than Sainté’s recent performance over a similar timescale, it is les Verts who are considered the crisis club in France at present. Back-to-back home defeats against Grenoble and Lorient were unexpected and have left Laurent Roussey’s job as head coach of the Loire club looking very uncertain indeed.

A trip to the Stade Vélodrome is the last thing that les Verts need at present, particularly with a UEFA Cup clash against Rosenborg approaching fast in midweek. Ilan, Landrin and Dabo are all expected to sit out for Sainté while Bayal Sall is banned.

[2mas]

• This will be Rosenborg's first game in France under Erik Hamrén. The Swedish coach has come up against French opposition with three previous clubs.

• His AIK Solna side took on Nîmes Olympique SC in the 1996/97 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup second round, winning 3-1 in France but going down 1-0 at home.

• Hamrén's Örgryte IS team lost out to OGC Nice on away goals in the 2003 UEFA Intertoto Cup second round, winning 3-2 at home but losing 2-1 in France. St-Etienne's Cédric Varrault played for Nice in both of those games.

• In the first round of the 2004/05 UEFA Cup, Hamrén's Aalborg BK met AJ Auxerre drawing 1-1 in Denmark but losing 2-0 in France.

• The coach has thus won two games against French sides, drawing one and losing three. In France, he has won one game and lost two.

Read more: Les Verts aim to maintain perfect start

[Gerrit]

We will face quite motivated opponents in Kopenhagen soon...
http://www.hln.be/hln/nl/...ilms.dhtml


Translated: the players of FCK get 2 porn movies for free from a sponsor with every win. The sponsor, a porn film producent who have publicity boards in the stadium, promised every player 2 brand new adult films per victory, hoping to motivate the players again this way after a few bad results.

We will surely get a very motivated FC Kopenhagen against us now. Can we not ask to give the porn to Rosenborg in case we would win the game? Maybe it would motivate our players as well to finally get a good away result in Europe
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Rosenborg, forever pride of the North!

[2mas]

Valencia are looking for revenge. Both the home match and away match last year are kind of highlights in the history of Rosenborg - especially the latter.

There is however an opinion both among Rosenborg supporters and other Norwegians that RBK met a Valencia team totally out of shape. This I would say is wrong. Valencia were unbeaten in the league (6-2-0) before travelling to Trondheim, and were one point behind of Real Marid and one point in front of Barcelona. It was after (or during?) the two losses against Rosenborg their bad winter began.

On Thursday Rosenborg need at least one point, while hoping Club Brugge don't beat St. Etienne.

My biggest concern in the moment are our off-season stats:

06.12.95: Blackburn - Rosenborg 4-1
04.12.96: AC Milan - Rosenborg 1-2
05.03.97: Rosenborg - Juventus 1-1
19.03.97: Juventus - Rosenborg 2-0
10.12.97: Olympiakos - Rosenborg 2-2
09.12.98: Juventus - Rosenborg 2-0
07.12.99: Real Madrid - Rosenborg 3-1
29.02.00: Dinamo Kiev - Rosenborg 2-1
08.03.00: Rosenborg - Dinamo Kiev 1-2
14.03.00: Bayern München - Rosenborg 2-1
22.03.00: Rosenborg - Real Madrid 0-1
07.12.00: Rosenborg - Alavés 1-3 (UEFA Cup)
26.02.04: Benfica - Rosenborg 1-0 (UEFA Cup)
03.03.04: Rosenborg - Benfica 2-1 (UEFA Cup)
07.12.04: Arsenal - Rosenborg 5-1
06.12.05: Lyon - Rosenborg 2-1
15.02.06: Rosenborg - Zenit St. Petersburg 0-2
23.02.06: Zenit St. Petersburg - Rosenborg 2-1
28.11.07: Rosenborg - Chelsea 0-4
11.12.07: Schalke - Rosenborg 3-1
14.02.08: Rosenborg - Fiorentina 0-1 (UEFA Cup)
21.02.08: Fiorentina - Rosenborg 2-1 (UEFA Cup)

2-2-18 in 22 matches and 18-46 in goal difference don't scare anyone...

(2000-2002 there were two group stages, and Rosenborg finished in the beginning of November.)

[Kjello]

Valencia had 6-0-2 when they came to Lerkendal. Still only one point behind Real Madrid and one point infront of Barcelona. Valencia had these results around those matches:
26.08 Valencia - Villarreal 0-3
02.09 Almería - Valencia 1-2
16.09 Valencia - Valladolid 2-1
23.09 Betis - Valencia 1-2
26.09 Valencia - Getafe 2-1
30.09 Recreativo - Valencia 0-1
07.10 Valencia - Espanyol 1-2
21.10 Deportivo - Valencia 2-4

24.10 Rosenborg - Valencia 2-0

28.10 Sevilla - Valencia 3-0
Flores fired day after.
31.10 Valencia - Real Madrid 1-5
Koeman hired
04.11 Mallorca - Valencia 0-2
Koeman comes in

06.11 Valencia - Rosenborg 0-2

11.11 Valencia - Murcia 3-0
Then the crises started with only three points the next 9 matches.

[2mas]

My bad, my memory failed me.

[2mas]

Mentioning the Chelsea loss without other late November matches was just wrong of me. Here are the correct statistics:

22.11.95: Rosenborg - Legia Warszawa 4-0
06.12.95: Blackburn - Rosenborg 4-1
20.11.96: Rosenborg - IFK Göteborg 1-0
04.12.96: AC Milan - Rosenborg 1-2
05.03.97: Rosenborg - Juventus 1-1
19.03.97: Juventus - Rosenborg 2-0
27.11.97: Rosenborg - Real Madrid 2-0
10.12.97: Olympiakos - Rosenborg 2-2
25.11.98: Rosenborg - Athletic Bilbao 2-1
09.12.98: Juventus - Rosenborg 2-0
24.11.99: Rosenborg - Bayern München 1-1
07.12.99: Real Madrid - Rosenborg 3-1
29.02.00: Dinamo Kiev - Rosenborg 2-1
08.03.00: Rosenborg - Dinamo Kiev 1-2
14.03.00: Bayern München - Rosenborg 2-1
22.03.00: Rosenborg - Real Madrid 0-1
23.11.00: Alavés - Rosenborg 1-1 (UEFA Cup)
07.12.00: Rosenborg - Alavés 1-3 (UEFA Cup)
27.11.03: Red Star - Rosenborg 0-1 (UEFA Cup)
26.02.04: Benfica - Rosenborg 1-0 (UEFA Cup)
03.03.04: Rosenborg - Benfica 2-1 (UEFA Cup)
24.11.04: Rosenborg - Panathinaikos 2-2
07.12.04: Arsenal - Rosenborg 5-1
23.11.05: Rosenborg - Olympiakos 1-1
06.12.05: Lyon - Rosenborg 2-1
15.02.06: Rosenborg - Zenit St. Petersburg 0-2
23.02.06: Zenit St. Petersburg - Rosenborg 2-1
28.11.07: Rosenborg - Chelsea 0-4
11.12.07: Schalke - Rosenborg 3-1
14.02.08: Rosenborg - Fiorentina 0-1 (UEFA Cup)
21.02.08: Fiorentina - Rosenborg 2-1 (UEFA Cup)

7-6-18 in 31 matches and 33-52 in goal difference.

As you see, the late November stats are not that bad - because of home advantage?

22.11.95: Rosenborg - Legia Warszawa 4-0
20.11.96: Rosenborg - IFK Göteborg 1-0
27.11.97: Rosenborg - Real Madrid 2-0
25.11.98: Rosenborg - Athletic Bilbao 2-1
24.11.99: Rosenborg - Bayern München 1-1
23.11.00: Alavés - Rosenborg 1-1 (UEFA Cup)
27.11.03: Red Star - Rosenborg 0-1 (UEFA Cup)
24.11.04: Rosenborg - Panathinaikos 2-2
23.11.05: Rosenborg - Olympiakos 1-1
28.11.07: Rosenborg - Chelsea 0-4

5-4-1 in 10 matches and 15-10 in goal difference.

[Gerrit]

I fear that St Etienne will not travel to Belgium with full strength. I mean, in previous years teams with 6 points usually qualified for the next round, teams with more than 6 sort of always did. So St Etienne are very comfortable, having pretty much qualified already and with another home game to go, so I fear they will not risk any injuries or suspensions in Brugge.

It remains speculations but if Brugge wins it is not necessarily a bad thing as long as we get the points against Valencia as well. Because in that scenario St Etienne remain at 6 points and Valencia at 1, while St Etienne need at least a draw to secure 1st or 2nd spot and avoid tough opponents in the next round. This would mean they will probably go for a last efford at home against Valencia and a draw would be enough to keep Valencia behind us assuming we are beating them at home now. If it is Brugge or St Etienne who already have qualification assured does not change our situation that much by the last match day I think.

One certainty we have, if we dont beat Valencia it is pretty much over and out So we need to do that and not look too much at other teams, if we win both remaining games we go through no matter what ...
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Rosenborg, forever pride of the North!

[2mas]

The lack of Villa made Valencia very static last year, and the game play would be different this time. I therefore fear Stadsgaard's pace will missed.

9 goals against in his 13 league matches and 10 goals against in the 3 latest matches without him are statistics in "his favour"...

Valencia seemed not to care in the 0-2 loss in Trondheim a year ago. I think they will be more motivated this time, but Albelda makes me begin to wonder:

"On the midfield they [Rosenborg] have two Brazilians, who are playing really well. On top they got Iversen, but I don't know whether he still is playing. In the back they have Kvarme."

[Skotten]

Albelda needs to brush up on his football knowledge!

[2mas]

Sapara's kne injury was worse than he hoped, and he will miss both remaining matches. Maybe it will be 4-3-3 with Pelu on the right wing.

By the way: Press kit Rosenborg - Valencia

The match will be shown on Aljazeera.

[2mas]

Both Vicente and Emiliano Moretti have been ruled out due to injury, and they will join the pair of Miguel Angulo and David Silva in the recovery room.

Also out of the match are Hugo Viana, Nikola Zigic, Timo Hildebrand, Iván Helguera and Curro Torres.

Coach Unai Emery has decided to select left-winger Jaume Costa to travel with the squad, whilst Asier Del Horno is a doubt for the match.

Valencia squad to face Rosenborg: Renan, Guaita, Miguel, Marchena, Alexis, Albiol, Del Horno, Jaume Costa, Maduro, Albelda, Fernandes, Baraja, Edu, Joaquín, Pablo, Mata, Villa, Morientes

Read more: Valencia Without Vicente Or Moretti For Rosenborg Clash

Sainté’s league position is still a relic of Roussey’s reign, with Perrin only having taken charge for two matches. The 52 year-old understands that Ligue 1 has to be his top priority despite a desire to succeed in Europe.

“Given our ranking, the match in Nancy [on Sunday] is super-important,� he said. “We must get a result. This does not mean that we will scuttle for the CFA side [the reserves] and play them in Bruges. In Nancy, I will put our best team forward, although it will not necessarily be the side that will play in Bruges.�

Read more: Perrin: No Saint-Étienne Reserves In Bruges

But the reserve team is not the same as the senior reserves, so I guess St. Etienne won't play their best eleven in Brugge...

[2mas]

The classical statement from the opponent before every Rosenborg match in European cups:

"This encounter is not about revenge for last year in the Champions League, that was a different situation," said Albelda.

"This game will help us see how we are doing in this competition. Rosenborg are a very strong and very physical team."

Read more: Los Che not out for revenge

I know physical includes endurance, but I don't think Albelda has that in mind...

This was by the way not the wisest move on rbk.no: Un curso en español del Rosenborg insulta a los jugadores del Valencia

[2mas]

As I know, outside Norway the match is streamed for free at bet365.

[2mas]

Funniest expectiation in a while:

Probable Starting XI (4-1-2-3): Lund Hansen - Basma, Dorsin, Lustig, Lago - Berbatovci - Skjelbred, Strand - Sellin, Konan Yam, Aas

Read more: Uefa Cup Preview: Rosenborg BK - Valencia

[RBKalle]

Simply embarrassing...

No excuses for such a bad performance. 0-4 with no real scoring chances, and with awful plays from a team that seemed clueless and confused.

The absence of Sapara, the silly "november slump" thing, Tippeliagaen being over... poor excuses for an amateurish game by an amateurish side.

If that's all RBK can do in Europe, some years without European Cups won't be a shame... See, steamrolling over teams like Astana, Ekranas and Tampere means squat in the end... Even winning the Scandinavian derbies against DIF and Brøndby are meager consolations if the team gets toyed with by any "bigger" club.

RBK need a revolution, and most important to find back their winning instinct, also in Europe

[Hvit mann som pusher 50]

I'm beginning to fear that we'll need a new 1977 before something happens... But I'm not too convinced that the current administration would take the hint even then...
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Du och vi, Alfred - du och vi

[Skotten]

Meh.

[RBKalle]

Well, AaB have overachieved much more than RBK did last year, so I wouldn't take them as a measuring stick...

In last year's campaing, Lady Luck kept smiling on RBK... Tampere FC in the 3rd qualification round, the lucky draw at Chelsea, even the two wins against the worst Valencia in ages...

The main problem is that we've been rewarded way over our actual merits, from the 2006 gold onwards, and that led to a false sense of confidence, not backed up by an actual strength or by a mid-term project.

In a way the same that happened to AC Milan after the 2007 CL win.

I do think we need a total makeover, and I still wonder what happened to all the money RBK got last year(s) in CL and UEFA cup.

Time to open the wallet for real.

[Skotten]

[RBKalle]

Hamrén isn't (yet) part of the problem.

In my eyes the problem has been the relative lack of a decent long-time plan in recent years.

Since Eggen left, RBK haven't really had a stable and definite lead.
The Manager got changed every single year, and the results speak for themselves.

Hareide could have been the ideal successor, but he went on to take "care" of the National Team.

Then we got more or less a different Manager every season, and the initial success was more due to the dividends of the previous years than thanks to the "new deal".

As said, the 2006 Gold with that awesome comeback, ended up being a curse, as another mediocre year would have forced the management to take serious actions to invert the negative trend.

Instead we got a false sense of "safety", and here's the result: two 5th places, a reasonable CL campaign, an Intertoto Cup [big deal] and an awesome 0-7 goal difference in UEFA Cup Group Stage.


About the money and the players...

I really wonder what happened to the CL money of last year.

And let's take a look at who were supposed to bring RBK back on track: either Adeccoliga "hot" prospects, totally unproven at an higher level, or "shot-in-the-dark" foreigners.

Even the usually reliable Scandinavia market has kinda let them down, but at least Lustig has margins of improvement, and Dorsin is still reliable. Serie A reject Stadsgaard would be adequate, if he wasn't made of tinfoil...

Who would I buy?

Better question is... who would join RBK now?