Stabæk and Vålerenga

The 2019 season was a much more comfortable season for Stabæk after surviving relegation playoffs in 2018. They won 10, drew 10, lost 10 and finished 8th place in the league. It did look in the summer that they would be in trouble, but the arrival of experienced Swede, Jan Jonsson, turned things around for them.

The 60 year old has plenty experience in Norway with Stabæk, Rosenborg and Aalesund, and arrived back last year after a few years in Japan with two different clubs.

Based in Bærum near Oslo, Stabæk play at the 4'938 capacity Nadderud Stadion. Despite the small stadium, they do have good recent history in the top flight in Norway, winning the title in 2008, a second place in 2007, and three third places since the turn of the century.

There has been a couple of important players leave since last season though, Ronald Hernandez  one who left, joining Aberdeen. The Venezuelan defender was impressive in his two and a half years with the club.

More importantly though, rising star and one of the best young players in Norway, Ola Brynhildsen, has left for Molde. The 21 year old scored 6 goals last year, but he is much more than goals, his close control and game intelligence is a real standout for someone his age, and Stabæk will miss him a lot.

They have made a conscious effort to bring in young players this winter, with Jesper Isaksen joining from Kristiansund, and two players coming in from England.

One is Norwegian Kornelius Normann Hansen from Southampton, and the other is an English born Chinese Taipei international, Will Donkin.

Donkin, 19, was part of the Chelsea and Crystal Palace systems, but has moved to Norway now to pursue more first team football, and the attacking midfielder could well have a part to play this season.

They way they finished 2019 should give them belief they can finish in the top half again, but goals could well be the issue, although Kosuke Kinoshita has looked sharp in pre season, so he could be the one to start the campaign as the main striker.

Key Players

Emil Bohinen, son of former international Lars, now Aalesund manager, is one of the best talents in Norway. Just turned 21, the central midfielder looks like a really classy player. Tall and hard working, he has a great left foot and was another important player for Stabæk last year.

He has great vision for a pass from midfield, and he also breaks up play really well. A classic box to box midfielder, he is capable of scoring goals, and also has penalty duties and takes set pieces.

A youth international at all ages, he looks certain to go on to full international honours, and I think this year he could be one of the best midfielders in the league. Four goals and five assists last year, but this year you can expect an even greater return, and also look for him to run games from midfield.

The only worry is if they can hang on to him over the summer, with interest from England and France likely to appear as the transfer window opens, and even as I write, it looks like offers are on the table.

Another big young player last year, and already the captain at Stabæk aged 23, is Andreas Hanche-Olsen. The central defender has been a regular for over three years now and will again be the central figure in a strong defense.

Aggressive in the air and on the ground, he is also comfortable on the ball, and has good relationship with left back Jeppe Moe, his good friend off the pitch as well.

Stabæk can also rely on having the 2019's best goalkeeper in the league between the sticks as well. Marcus Sandberg was in excellent form last year, at 29 years old it was his first full season as a number one goalkeeper at the top level.

He was very consistent throughout the year, making very few mistakes and showed his shot stopping abilities on several occasions for Stabæk.

With momentum from autumn, Stabæk should be looking to start this season better than last, and with there not being much between a lot of teams in the middle of the league, they could easily finish anywhere between 5th and 12th.

Prediction 11th

Vålerenga are from Oslo, and historically one the biggest teams in Norway. Five times winner of the top flight in Norway, there most recent was in 2005. They have also won the Norwegian Cup four times, 2008 being the most recent.

Recently however they haven't been able to break in to the top 5, only one time since 2006 when they finished 2nd in 2010. Last year Ronny Deila was in charge and they started the season well, but fell away drastically after the summer break, eventually ending up in 10th, only four points from the drop.

Deila left in the winter to go to New York, and in his place has come Dag-Eilev Fagermo. He left Odd after an incredibly successful 13 year spell, in which his team was very defensively solid, and relied on individual quality for goalscoring.

Another team without a double figure goal scorer, 33 year old Mathias Vilhjalmsson only managed 5 as the main striker, he hasn't had a double figure season since 2013 with Start. The beautifully named, Peter Godly Michael is back from a short loan at Skeid last year, and he could well provide competition this year.

The squad is almost the same as last year, and they do have some good quality in attacking areas. So with Fagermo organising the defensive shape of the team, they should have a good base to work from.

Home games are played in the Intility Arena, which was completed in 2017 and has a capacity of 16'555, although last season averaged less than half full which didn't help the home team as they won only six games at home all season.

Key Players

Last year one of the real standouts for VIF was Aron Dønnum. The 22 year old attacking midfielder broke in to the first team last year, becoming the main creative player for the team.

Usually playing on the right hand side, he is very left footed and has very quick feet. He can run in behind with his pace, but cutting inside is when he is at his most dangerous.

He can pick out a pass as well as scoring with his powerful shot, and he plays with freedom to come inside and get on the ball in areas the defenders find difficult to pick up. This year he could become a real star in Eliteserien, and will most likely improve on the six league goals he managed last year.

Another quality midfielder is Kosovan international, Herolind Shala. The former Norwegian youth, also played youth football for Albania, and made six appearances for Albania, before switching allegiance to Kosovo.

Another left footer, he usually starts a little deeper than Dønnum, but loves getting forward and is a real goal threat. He is another with quick feet and a good shot, and his intelligence in the middle of the park stood out for Vålerenga last year.

The final part of an exciting trio of attacking midfielders, is Bård Finne. The 25 year old Norwegian was top scorer with eight goals last year, after 10 in the 2018 season. Short but very accomplished on the ball, he is also a very calm finisher.

He will likely start from the left hand side, cutting in on his right foot both to deliver crosses and be a goal threat. He is also the set piece taker for Vålerenga, and his dead ball delivery could be a big weapon this season.

With some exciting attacking talent, they perhaps are short of a number 9 to finish off chances. But with the defense likely to be tougher this year, Vålerenga are in a similar position to Stabæk, where they could easily find themselves further up the league than I predict.

Prediction 12th


Here is a look at my predicted table. I think teams from 4th to 12th could easily switch around and finish anywhere as we are set for another season where anyone can beat anyone in Eliteserien.


We can keep an eye on how wrong I was come the end of the season, and please keep following my blog as I will be reviewing every game week, and perhaps maybe picking one game for a report every week.