Have no fear, the preveiw is here. And though it feels strange and altogether too early in the year for such things, the 2010 Tippeliga kicks off this weekend in a round that bizarrely includes one of the juiciest fixtures of the entire calendar..

Saturday

Brann – Haugesund

Mixed fortunes for Brann’s forwards this week: Long-legged girlyman Erik Huseklepp has signed a three year-contract worth 3 million kr a year, whilst Danish dunderhead David Nielsen has lost a lot of money investing in windmills. “Now I can focus on the football”, said the easily distracted Huseklepp. “When you invest money you have to expect to lose it all,” said financial mastermind Nielsen. There is chaos and catastrophe in the air at Brann stadion, and dropping points to newly promoted West Coast rivals Haugesund on the opening day could be enough to send the club in to crisis mode. Which of course would be a lot of fun for everyone else.

Draw

Sunday

Aalesund – Lillestrøm

The preview returns, and so does that game we all love to play: “What is Kjetil Rekdal unhappy about this week?”

“It was grausame sache, to borrow a German expression”, he told a local newspaper.

What is he upset about?

A – The latest episode of oversexed Norwegian reality-TV abomination Paradise Hotel

B – His team’s defending against Rosenborg in the Superfinale

C – Raving loon Leading Norwegian pundit Davy Wathne’s brief and perplexing appearance on Twitter this week

D – Tor Honge Aarøy

Draw

Odd Grenland – Stabæk

Rosenborg and Stabæk-manager Jan Jönsson have been batting eyes at each other in an entirely inappropriate manner ever since it was revealed that RBK-manager Erik Hamrén is off to manage Sweden this summer, and Stabæk’s head-honcho Einar Schulz is sounding more and more like a girl who knows her boyfriend is too good for her: “I’ve been with Janne for almost six years now, and I understand totally if he says enough is enough – but I will do everything I can to make him stay”, he said, before going off to have a bit of a cry and watch Grey’s Anatomy. Possibly.

Away win

Start – Sandefjord

Start, the team whose squad can’t support any kind of injuries, have been hit by – you guessed it – injuries! 87 year old defender Bård Borgersen (maybe not) has picked up a bit of a thigh-strain and fellow defender Jesper Mathisen has a bad ankle, leaving manager Knut Tørum to chose between partnering Clarence Goodson with either Knut Henry Haraldsen who isn’t very good, or Avni Pepa who is bloody awful. Still, Sandefjord at home isn’t the worst way to start the season and you’d expect Tørum’s men to get off to a decent start anyway.

Home win

Strømsgodset – Kongsvinger

Why Kongsvinger, WHY?! Having finally convinced some local sponsors to cough up the cash for one more professional contract, Kongsvinger went out and signed Senegalese waste of space Mame Niang from Viking, who were delighted to get the lanky git off their wage-bill. Niang (2 goals in 22 Tippeliga games for Viking) will team up with Kim Holmen (1 goal in 24 appearances for Lyn last season), Adem Güven (relegated three times in the last three seasons) and Olav Tuelo Johannesen (3 goals in 24 appearances in the Adeccoliga last season), forming the most desperately goal-shy forward-line in Tippeliga history.

Home win

Tromsø – Hønefoss

If starting the Tippeliga in early march wasn’t a stupid idea in itself, the powers that be have gone one better and handed Tromsø a home-game in the first round. Tromsø are unfazed though, and have invited “the entire town” to come round and clear the snow from Alfheim stadium this Saturday. What better way to spend your weekend, ey?

Home win

Molde – Rosenborg

See, in most countries the footballing authorities are clever enough to make sure the first round of the fixtures are all thoroughly uninteresting encounters, knowing that everyone will tune in for the first round no matter who plays who. Not so in Norway, where the dimwits organizing things have, in their infinite wisdom, decided that the opening weekend is a good time to schedule arguably the juiciest tie of the calendar. Huzzah. Anyway, Rosenborg travel away to the team that by all accounts should be their closest rivals for the title this season. It’s the perfect opportunity for either team to state their intentions – Molde can show Rosenborg and everyone else that they mean business this time around, while Rosenborg can show that they really are back at the pinnacle of Scandinavian football and that last season’s dominance wasn’t a one-off. Or, more likely, it’ll be a thoroughly underwhelming draw.

Draw

Monday

Vålerenga – Viking

Brave new Viking will start off their new dawn attempting to raid Vålerenga, who themselves attempted a similar revolution some two years back and are only now starting to look half-decent. Just to illustrate what kind of expectations Hareide is dealing with, leader of the official Viking supporters club Geir-Inge Fiskebekk told TV2 when asked where he thought they’d finish this season that “I may be a Viking-fan, but the realist in me says top three/four”. Viking, least we forget, finished tenth last season.

Home win

..but enough of this nonsense, time for the business end of the table. Will Rosenborg walk away with it again or could we actually have a proper title-race this time around?

Rosenborg

Last season: Tippeliga champions

Good: Best squad in the league and resources to strengthen in the summer if things go awry in the first part of the season. There’s no indication that they’ve lost that remarkable ability to grind out results almost regardless of how they actually perform on the pitch, as evidenced by the Superfinal where they were really quite average but still picked up a comfortable 3-1 win.

Bad: Manager Erik Hamrén, the man widely credited with bringing Rosenborg out of their post-Eggen turmoil and restoring their dominant position in Norwegian football, will leave half-way through the season to manage Sweden full time. His departure will inevitably cause a bit of uncertainty and confusion. Also, with important players like Steffen Iversen and Vadim Demidov only having a year left on their contracts and other key men like Anthony Annan angling for a move abroad, the potential for unrest in the squad is considerable. Champions League could prove a distraction.

Key man: Ghanaian midfield anchor Anthony Annan is one of the main reasons Rosenborg have been so bloody hard to beat in recent times, with his stellar positioning awareness and reading of the game he time and time again breaks up opposing attacks and makes his team damned near impossible to break down. His efficient if unspectacular style is almost symbolic of this new Rosenborg.

NFN predicts: Clear favorites for the title, but inevitable change of manager and high potential for unrest in the squad means they are unlikely to be the unstoppable juggernaut we saw last season.

Molde

Last season: 2nd in the Tippeliga

Good: Their magnificent midfield is still intact, and on-loan striker Djiby Fall from Lokomotiv Moscow looks capable of filling the hole left by Mame Biram Diouf. Have made clever signings, especially young right back Magne Simonsen from Lyn has a bright future and should flourish under Kjell Jonevret’s tutelage. Played the best football in the league last season and there’s no reason why they shouldn’t do so this season as well.

Bad: A lack of resources mean that players who do well might be sold, and there isn’t much room to maneuver in the transfer-market if reinforcements are needed. Played superb football last season but had a tendency to drop silly points, and there isn’t much evidence that they’ve rectified this tendency. If new-boy Djiby Fall doesn’t settle they lack options up front.

Key man: Senegalese midfield maestro Makhtar Thioune was the best player in the league last season, and the fact that he’s 25 and not a couple of years younger means bigger foreign clubs might continue to overlook him.

NFN predicts: Should again be the entertainers of the league, and could give Rosenborg a serious run for their money if the reigning champions start slipping up.

Stabæk

Last season: 3rd in the Tippeliga

Good: Veigar Pall Gunnarson is back after a failed stint in French football, and re-united with his old strike-partner Daniel Nannskog the Icelandic forward should be back to his mercurial best. After some initial trouble last season Stabæk eventually managed to make their new indoor stadium the fortress they always intended it to be, and the quick artificial surface is ideally suited to their positive attacking football. Finished third last season in spite of all kinds of trouble both on and off the pitch, now that things look more settled there no reason why they should do any worse.

Bad: 4 million a year-forward Daniel Nannskog is now 35, and for a player whose game is heavily built around his physical explosiveness you have to wonder how long he can keep living up to his salary. Have had to completely re-jig their defense and there is some uncertainty surrounding that newly composed back four. Manager Jan Jönsson has been heavily linked with a move away, with Rosenborg seeing him as an ideal replacement for the outgoing Erik Hamrén.

Key man: Daniel Nannskog got the goals, Alanzinho got the headlines, but it was Veigar Pall Gunnarson who was the brains behind Stabæk’s insuppressible championship-winning forward-line of 2008. If he can re-produce that kind of form this time around Stabæk will be right up there.

NFN predicts: Like Molde, Stabæk will be battling Rosenborg’s machine-like dominance with flair and fleet-footed forwards. And quite tasty they look too. However, uncertainty surrounding their defense and manager means they are unlikely to go all the way.

Viking

Last season: 10th in the Tippeliga

Good: A disappointing 2009 lead to the departure of Teutonic tactician Uwe Rösler, and in their bid to revamp the club the Viking bigwigs certainly haven’t been stingy. Åge Hareide, former Norway-manager with league-titles from both Norway, Sweden and Denmark to his name, has been brought in to lead perennial underachievers Viking to glory. Hareide doesn’t come cheap, and a considerable amount of money has also been spent on Swedish forward Partik Ingelsteen from Heerenveen, Norwegian international goalkeeper Rune Jarstein from Rosenborg and the prodigal son Erik Nevland, who will return to his hometown Stavanger from Fulham in the summer.

Bad: With such spending comes a significant amount of pressure, and both the demanding Viking-fans and the media will quickly turn on the team if things don’t work out. The squad is strong but lacks champions, players who can take responsibility and lift the team when things go against them. The strategy of bringing back Scandinavian players from big foreign leagues has left other clubs with crippling wage-bills and disinterested, overrated players – why should it be different this time around?

Key man: Tomasz Sokolowski – the blond midfielder has yet to live up to the tremendous potential he showed at Lyn in his younger days, and his first season at Viking was largely ruined by a number of niggling injuries. Will be crucial as the midfield anchor in Hareide’s 4-3-3 formation.

NFN predicts: Yet another expensive new dawn at Viking, but unless a number of players can make major strides then all they’ve done is buy the most expensive 4th place in Tippeliga history.

THIS year’s World Cup will be the first held in Africa, and former footballer Bjorn Heidenstrom is doing his best to make his trip to South Africa memorable. The Norwegian is cycling and hitch hiking to the tournament from Oslo in an effort to raise awareness of refugee issues, using the generosity of what he enthusiastically refers to as “the football family” to help smooth his path. When NFN caught up with Heidenstrom he was in the Sudanese capital Khartoum, and plotting his next move with the experience of a man who has already passed through three continents on his epic journey.

“From here I’m heading to Ethiopia, to the capital Addis Adaba,” Heidenstrom explains. “The UNHCR will help me out there, and show me some of their work, and then the route will be south to Kenya and then to Tanzania. I’m not an Africa expert, so once I get to Tanzania I’ll ask the locals how best to proceed from there.”

Heidenstrom has created and utilised an immense amount of goodwill towards his project, which is supported by Sepp Blatter, Michel Platini, Francesco Totti, FC Barcelona, FIFA, UEFA and pretty much everyone who has heard about it, from the world’s northernmost football club Svalbard Turn to Al-Merreikh, a team from Khartoum.

From individuals Heidenstrom asks for publicity and ‘pairs of eyes’ on his blog, website, Twitter feed and other social media platforms. From football clubs he wants as many shirts as possible, preferably signed. These can be sent by supporters, groups of friends, a five a side team even – Heidenstrom only asks that they contain the initials “FC”, meaning football club. The shirts will then be turned into a giant symbol to be displayed at the tournament.

“We had ten Finnish clubs help us when I passed through Helsinki, either through donating a shirt or offering me a place to stay,” says Heidenstrom. “The football family has been so welcoming and understanding, because they know that just a little thing can help so much, and they’re happy to give what they can. Here in Africa they know that every African boy dreams of becoming a footballer – not a pilot, or a president, but a footballer. This game is incredibly powerful.”

Heidenstrom first became aware of the power of football when he retired from professional football and moved into the media and marketing side of the game. There was a lot of sponsor-relations work, a fair bit of schmoozing, but what he really enjoyed was finding ways to harness football for social goals through collaboration with third sector organisations. These partnerships found an outlet in the Soccer Against Crime and Valerenga against racism projects, but then Heidenstrom’s wanderlust got the better of him.

“We Norwegians have a tradition of large and small expeditions,” continues Heidenstrom. “I did one smallish expedition in collaboration with the Norwegian Red Cross, and then I decided that something bigger was needed, and would be fun. This is the result.”

“This” has become an impressive project. Heidesntrom does not raise funds, only counts people made aware of the project, and mentioned an astounding figure of 40 million in our conversation. The goals have received a mixed reaction from those outside the football family.

“It’s been okay, but many people here in Sudan for example ask why I have to focus on the problems, on the civil war, and not project a more positive image,” Heidenstrom comments seriously. “To them I reply that yes, I do, because in my country and probably in Finland too people make such a fuss about a few hundred refugees a year arriving. In Sudan they have 500 every day, and they have nothing!”

“There are children who were born in camps and who have spent decades there, so our small contribution to help these people is not a problem,” continues Heidenstrom, now hitting his stride. “If these critical people could come and see how things are for refugees here, they would understand. They simply don’t have any other choice than to try and leave, it is not that living in cold Northern countries is any kind of paradise – these people have no choice!”

If you would like to contribute to the project, visit www.theshirt2010.net

So that’s the strugglers out of the way then, but what about the teams that are quite good but not quite good enough?

Strømsgodest

Last season: 12th in the Tippeliga

Good: Ronny Deila’s plucky darlings are back, and they’re even younger (and presumably pluckier) than before. Deila is one of the youngest and cleverest managers in the country and it’s therefore appropriate that he’s in charge of a team bristling with young talent. 19 year old striker Marcus Pedersen in particular is one to watch, the youngster scored 10 goals last season in a team that didn’t exactly provide the best service.

Bad: The departure of midfield maestro Frederik Winsnes is a huge blow, the 34 year old had a superb 2009 season and his experience and cool head was invaluable to Godset. Everyone loves to see young talent get a chance, but Strømsgodset’s squad now looks almost too young and Ronny Deila has a major task ahead of him in guiding the kids through a potentially tricky season.

Key man: Volatile frontman Marcus Pedersen has been dubbed the Norwegian Wayne Rooney for his aggressive, all-action style. The 19 year old needs to keep his cool and keep scoring, though if he does Strømsgodset face a real battle to keep him at the club.

NFN predicts: It could well be another season fighting relegation for Godset, but we here at NFN have faith in Ronny Deila and his youngsters. They’ll be fine.

Brann

Last season: 5th in the Tippeliga

Good: Girly man-forward Erik Huseklepp is one of the best players in the league and if it hadn’t been for the fact that he runs like a girl he’d probably have been sold to a bigger league by now. The wobbly one is backed up by thuggish cloggers like Eirik Bakke and Rodolph Austin, and new signing Eirik Mjelde should provide some much needed goals from midfield.

Bad: With the departure of Kristjan Örn Sigurdsson their defense looks very thin indeed, and both Bakke and Austin have been tested as central defenders this winter with mixed results. A local man recently offered the club 40 million kr on the condition that the entire board resigned, the club declined, but suffice to say there’s potential for tremendous turmoil behind the scenes this season. To say Brann as a club is a bit of a circus would be an insult to circuses everywhere.

Key man: The feminine frontman Erik Huesklepp is, all jokes aside, really rather good. His rather unconventional style also works very much to Brann’s favor, because if a more photogenic player did the things Huseklepp does he’d get sold to a bigger league pronto.

NFN predicts: After a couple of vaguely stable years the Brann we all know and loathe are back: Decent quality on the pitch offset by the club being a total madhouse off it. Mid-table should be about right.

Lillestrøm

Last season: 11th in the Tippeliga

Good: Manager Henning Berg is a canny operator and has fearlessly gone about rejuvenating a Lillestrøm-side that had gone badly stale. 2009 was very much a transitional season, but now Berg’s team is really starting to shape up. Getting former Fredrikstad-forward Tarik Elyounoussi on loan from Heerenveen for the first half of the season could be a real coup.

Bad: Converting traditional long-ball merchants Lillestrøm into a proper footballing side is a task fraught with worry and woe, and Berg relies heavily on his younger (and thus less consistent) players to provide energy and flair. If they can’t, Lillestrøm look awfully one-dimensional and predictable.

Key man: 19 year old Nigerian Nosa Emanuel Igiebor has been tasked with providing creative spark in an otherwise very workmanlike midfield, and if he can turn the flashes of brilliance he showed last season into something altogether more consistent then he’ll soon outgrow this league.

NFN predicts: A good blend of experience and youthful promise means Henning Berg’s Lillestrøm should consolidate their position as a decent mid-table outfit.

Vålerenga

Last season: 7th in the Tippeliga

Good: After player/manager/supreme overlord Martin Andresen stopped faffing about and focused on being a manager last season things really came together for Vålerenga, and their squad now looks leaner and more balanced. Striker Mohammed “Moa” Abdellaoue looks to have shrugged off the various injuries and other issues that troubled him last season, and on form he’s one of the best in the league. Youngsters like Harmeet Sigh and Mohammed Fellah are now older and more experienced than last time around.

Bad: All Tippeliga teams are in trouble if they get a few injuries, but Vålerenga in particular look short on coverage. Injuries up front or in central defense would leave the side looking very vulnerable indeed. Martin Andresen got his act together in the second part of the 2009 season after spending the first part closer to the sack than your average potato, but there are still lingering doubts.

Key man: Mohammed “Moa” Abdellaoue – fellow Vålerenga-frowards Morten Berre and Bengt Sæternes are experienced campaigners, but this season Vålerenga really need Moa to step up and fulfill his potential.

NFN predicts: After a fairly harrowing 2009 Martin Andresen could do with a season where things aren’t quite so crazy, and we think he’ll get it.

Start

Last season: 9th in the Tippeliga

Good: With the occasional brilliance of Christian Bolanos, the emerging talent Mads Stokkelien and the reportedly much improved Espen Børufsen, Start’s forward-line looks really rather tasty. There’s even talk of the ever-injured Ole Martin Årst actually getting through a couple of training-sessions without twanging anything. Clarence Goodson at the back is one of the best defenders in the league.

Bad: Another club that did well just to stay in business this winter, but the financial difficulties means that a wafer-thin squad hasn’t gotten the reinforcements it needed. Apart from Goodson their defense looks more than a little suspect, and there’s a general lack of coverage all over the pitch that means any injury could be devastating. There are still some question-marks surrounding manager Knut Tørum, who occasionally looked a bit clueless in 2009. Second season-syndrome is a danger.

Key man: Whenever Clarence Goodson missed games for whatever reason in 2009, Start looked very very vulnerable indeed. The American is the obvious lynchpin in a defense that otherwise simply lacks quality.

NFN predicts: With their fine frontline and somewhat shabby defense Start could quickly become the neutral’s favorite for 2010. To put it simply: There will be goals. In both ends. Unless they get badly hit by injuries or the squad is ravaged in the transfer-window, they should be fine.

Odd Grenland

Last season: 4th in the Tippeliga

Good: Manager Dag-Eilev Fagermo has an ego that makes Kjetil Rekdal look like Ole Gunnar Solskjær, but for a reason: He really is very very good at his job. He’s assembled a balanced squad where just about every player looks perfectly suited to their role in his 4-3-3 formation, with quick wingers providing plenty of ammunition for big Peter Kovacs in the middle. On home astro-turf they were damned near unbeatable last season.

Bad: Their element of surprise is gone, and while they look too solid to fall prey to the much dreaded second season-syndrome they will have to contend with the fact that everyone now knows their tricks and knows what to expect. Far too heavily dependent on big Peter Kovacs for goals, if the huge Hungarian runs dry there’s no obvious plan B.

Key man: You guessed it, Big Peter Kovacs. Showed last season that he can hack it in the Tippeliga after all, but needs to keep it up. Getting success is one thing, sustaining it is another thing entirely.

NFN predicts: Unlikely to reprise their remarkable fourth place finish last season, but you’ll expect them to trundle along in the upper reaches of the mid-table region

It’s early March, there’s snow all over the place, yet the calendar insist the Norwegian season is about to begin so we here at NFN thought we’d provide you with a rundown of the 16 teams that will make up the 2010 Tippeliga. Starting with the teams that could be in for a bit of a struggle..

Kongsvinger

Last season: Promoted from the Adeccoliga through the playoffs

Good: Kongsvinger really have nothing going for them whatsoever, with a tiny squad of players with little or no Tippeliga experience and no money for reinforcements. This, bizarrely, could be an advantage in itself as they’ll play every minute of the 2010 Tippeliga without any kind of pressure.

Bad: With only 16 outfield players on their books and no money to reinforce, things could and probably should go very badly wrong for Kongsvinger. Their forward-line consists of Kim Holmen (one goal in the 2009 Tippeliga), Adem Güven (relegated in his last three seasons) and Olav Tuelo Johannesen (three goals in the 2009 Adeccoliga). Oh dear.

Key man: 37 year old defender/head of marketing (seriously) Vidar Riseth is what the papers would describe as “a colorful character”, which is just a polite way of saying he’s a bit mental. But he knows absolutely every trick in the book and is a handy guy to have around in a relegation-scrap.

NFN predics: Doom and damnation, anything other than last place would be a small miracle.

Haugesund

Last season: Won the Adeccoliga

Good: There’s no shortage of enthusiasm in Haugesund as the team from the West Coast makes their first appearance in the Tippeliga since they were relegated back in 2000. Striker Thomas Sørum scored 24 goals in 29 games last season and should find the net consistently in the Tippeliga as well. Jacob Sørensen (signed from Odd) and Juska Savolainen (signed from Rosenborg) are solid reinforcements.

Bad: The defense in particular looks some way short of Tippeliga-standard, in spite of winning the Adeccoliga the team still shipped 37 goals last season and the backline doesn’t look notably strengthened since then. If Thomas Sørum doesn’t find the net as often as he did last season there are few other obvious goalscorers.

Key man: Juska Savolainen has a lot to prove after a fairly disastrous spell at Rosenborg. The midfielder arrived from Finland with a big reputation but has yet re-produce his TamU-form in Norway. Haugesund need a big season from the little man if they’re going to stay up.

NFN predicts: If they get off to a good start, if key players get it right and if the enthusiasm of the town can help carry the team onwards, Haugesund have a fair shot at staying up. Those are big ifs though..

Hønefoss

Last season: Runners-up in the Adeccoliga

Good: Newly promoted Hønefoss have raised quite a few eyebrows with their activities in the transfer-market this winter. While just about everyone else have been moaning about not having any money, Hønefoss have brought in established Tippeliga-names like Kristjan Örn Sigurdsson (from Brann), Erik Hagen (from Vålerenga), Paul Obiefule and Davy Claude Angan (both from Lyn). These additions make Hønefoss the strongest of the newly promoted teams, at least on paper. Manager Ole Bjørn Sundgot is a very clever young man who is thought to have a bright future in the game.

Bad: As tends to be the case with teams in this end of the table, Hønefoss’ fortunes this season hinge very much on whether or not their forwards can hack it in the Tippeliga. Angan looked sharp in a horrible Lyn-side last term but is a raw and largely unproven talent, Lars Lafton has scored a lot of goals in the Adeccoliga but has no Tippeliga-experience, if neither of these two come up with the goods then goals could be a problem.

Key man: Kristjan Örn Sigurdsson surprised a lot of people when he left Brann to play for newly promoted Hønefoss, but then it emerged that Hønefoss will be paying him a whopping 2 million a year to do so. Had a mixed 2009 and with such an inflated salary the pressure will be on Sigurdsson to shore up Hønefoss’ defense.

NFN predicts: After 11 seasons in the Adeccoliga Hønefoss have finally taken the step up, and their heavy investments in the transfer-market display a determination to stay there. They just might make it, but it’s by no means a safe bet

Sandefjord

Last season: 8th in the Tippeliga

Good: NFN’s 2009 manager of the year Patrick Walker guided Sandefjord to an 8th place finish last term that was as unlikely as it was remarkable, and the only former Gillingham-player ever to manage in the Tippeliga clearly knows his stuff. Goalkeeper Espen Bugge Pettersen can on his day win points all by himself.

Bad: This one has second season syndrome written all over it. Last season Sandefjord were incredibly efficient and put away roughly 50% of their chances, that kind of ruthlessness is off the charts and unlikely to be repeated. Especially since goalscoring midfielder Eirik Mjelde has been sold to Brann.

Key man: Espen Bugge Pettersen, the somewhat unconventional goalkeeper had a superb 2009 and Sandefjord will need another heroic season from the shotstopper if they’re going to stay up.

NFN predicts: Unless Patrick Walker can conjure up another miracle then relegation is a real possibility for Sandefjord this time around.

Tromsø

Last season: 6th in the Tippeliga

Good: Sead Ramovic is a raving loon, but also one of the best goalkeepers in the league. Ahead of him he has a solid back-line, and overall the squad includes a decent number of established Tippeliga-players. Old Man Rushfeldt (37) will continue to score goals as long as his body allows him to stand upright on a football-pitch for 90 minutes a week. Can usually count on a solid home-form as no one really likes traveling that far up North.

Bad: Tore Reginiussen, Morten Moldskred, Joel Lindpere and Lars Iver Strand have all departed since last season, and Moldskred in particular will be missed. Their replacements have potential but look unconvincing overall. Manager Per-Mathias Høgmo is a peculiar man who knows his football but perhaps isn’t the kind of inspirational leader a team needs to get through a difficult transitional season.

Key man: The Bosninan nutcase Sead Ramovic needs to keep his cool and perform consistently, because in a team that probably won’t score a lot of goals a match-winner between the sticks can be the difference between mid-table security and an altogether more perilous situation..

NFN predicts: Tromsø have done alright just to stay out of bankruptcy these last twelve months, but their squad has suffered and now looks very limited indeed. Should stay up but if one or more of the newly promoted teams have a good season then Tromsø could be in serious trouble.

Aalesund

Last seasons: 13th in the Tippeliga, cup champions

Good: NFN Norway’s 2009 man of the year Kjetil Rekdal is never far from the headlines, often for the wrong reasons, but the talkative tactician is also a very clever manager who knows how to motivate and get the best out of a limited squad. Unrealistically tall forward Tor Hogne Aarøy, all 204 centimeters of him, can cause any defense a problem just by standing there, being huge. The squad has a decent blend of experienced campaigners and vaguely promising youngsters.

Bad: Looking at Aalesunds squad there are still far more flaws than strengths there. They have an unholy and impractical tendency to both screw up in the defense and be altogether too wasteful in front of the opposition’s goal, which of course is a rather bad combination. Few obvious goalscorers up front.

Key man: Midfield-general and captain Johan Arneng will be crucial as the experienced heartbeat of a young midfield. His ability on the ball will also be important in a team that far too often resorts to predictably hoofing the ball to Aarøy for 90 minutes.

NFN predicts: As much as we love Kjetil Rekdal and his orage army here at NFN headquarters, it’s hard to look at this Aalesund-side and see much improvement on the team that was nearly relegated last season. They’ll need to fight for 90 minutes of every game to avoid a similar fate this time around.

A hectic week on the international and domestic front culminated with some cracking and not so cracking encounters. The main talking point is on John Carew`s return to form and whether he can maintain it to fire Aston Villa into fourth spot come May. This weekend also saw some big teams lose their first matches of the season.

Herman Hreidarsson will be returning to Wembley after his Portsmouth side produced a shock in the FA Cup quarter final. The south coast side defied expectations to beat Birmingham City two nil and to move on to a semi final date at the illustrious stadium.

John Carew blasted Aston Villa towards a semi final date with Chelsea as they came back from two goals down to beat Reading 4-2. The former Rosenborg man grabbed a hat trick as Villa stepped up a few gears after the break. His third and final goal came from the penalty spot after he was hauled down by Icelandic star Ivar Ingimarsson .After the match Villa manager heaped praise on the Norwegian ,”Gabriel Agbonlahor was poorly this morning and had to go home so John steps in and scores a second-half hat-trick which was absolutely delightful. John at his hungriest can perform like that. He got the equaliser for us and his game lifted two or three-fold.

“Goals give him confidence and the next thing you know he is running the game. He can do that and I want him to perform like that more often. I would be delighted if he could score a hat-trick every week but first he needs to find a level of performance which is up there with the best strikers.” As for Reading and their Icelandic contingent it was the end of a lively and memorable FA Cup run.

Brede Hangeland was sure his effort was sailing but Spurs man of the match Heurelho Gomes stopped the big Norwegian. Hangeland`s Fulham now face a FA Cup quarter final replay at White Hart Lane.  

John Arne Riise`s Roma side were held to a nil all draw at home to rivals Ac Milan. The result leaves the Norwegian`s side two points behind Milan as they strive to catch Inter at the top of Serie A.

Nicklas Bendtner will be hoping he wont have to endure another nightmare like yesterday. The Danish striker missed a ton of chances , including a header from six yards out that he really should have scored. His misery was compounded when he was substituted with 17 minutes remaining and was greeted with an ironic standing ovation by the Gunners fans. Arsenal ran out 3-1 winners.

Peter Lovenkrands fired home a brace as Newcastle United trounced a hapless Barnsley side 6-1 at St James` Park. With the scores level, visiting goalkeeper Luke Steele was dismissed on the stroke of half time , as the floodgates began to open. The Dane bagged the opening goal of the game from the resulting penalty as the hosts went in one up at the break. The second half was somewhat a foregone conclusion, but nobody could predict Newcastle would score another five goals.  Three minutes after the restart Lovenkrands prodded home a fine header which his took his tally to the season for twelve. Amazingly enough all his goals have come on home ground.

Dennis Rommedahl sealed a comprehensive 3-0 victory for Ajax against Sparta Rotterdam. The superb volley was a fine end to a dazzling run by wonderkid Christian Eriksen, who earned his first cap for Denmark in midweek. The Danish duo will be anticipating next weeks crunch clash with fierce rivals PSV Eindhoven.

Jon Dahl Tomasson sat out Feyenoord`s 4-2 away win over Roda JC. An action packed game also included tow red cards with Feyenoord goalkeeper Darley been dismissed late on. Roda JC will be hoping an injury to Danish striker Mads Junker will not be too serious. The striker currently has 11 goals for the season but had to be replaced after half an hour.     

Kasper Schmeichel kept another clean sheet as Notts County ran out 3-0 winners away to Accrington Stanley. New manager Steve Cotterill has gotten off to a great start with three wins from three and will be hoping to maintain this form as the Magpies push for promotion.

Thomas Sorensen`s FA Cup dream ended as Chelsea beat Stoke City 2-0.

Morten Rasmussen helped Celtic to a 2-0 victory over Falkirk. The former Brondby star threaded the ball through the Bairns defence for strike partner Robbie Keane to bag his first of two goals.

Simon Kjaer did not let talk of his future deter him as his Palermo side beat Livorno 1-0 to regain fourth place. Talks of a move for the Dane this summer are gathering pace again.

Magnus Troest was one of two players to be sent off as his Recreativo De Huelva side earned a 1-1 all draw with Celta Vigo. The former Midjtylland star was dismissed in the 78 th minute but this did not hinder his side`s chances of getting an equaliser as Javi Fuego popped up late on to level matters. 

Christian Poulsen won the battle of the Danes in Serie A as his Juventus side beat Per Kroldrup`s Fiorentina 2-1.

Jonas Olsson is enduring a tough time lately. He was called into the Swedish squad for the friendly with Wales but never made his debut, West Brom fans were seen rowing with him after a match last week, oh and the small matter of a 3-1 defeaat at QPR will do him no good. 

Zlatan Ibrahimovic is another Swede who is enduring a horrid time. Barcelona grinded out a 2-2 draw with Almeria in a match that will be remembered for nothing more than shocking refereeing decisions. Carlos Clos Gomez was the man in the middle and made some bizarre decisions. He delayed the start of the match by 15 minutes as he was unhappy with Almeria`s shirts which carried a message for the victims of the earthquake in Chile. After the match started, the error prone ref was not far from further cock ups . Almeria will feel hard done by as he awarded Barca a free which was never a free but the Catalans equalised from it. Barca manager Pep Guardiola was harshly sent to the stands for protesting claims for a penalty, he was soon followed by Swede Ibrahimovic. The striker who was unlucky not to find the scoresheet barely touched the face of rival Domingo Cisma, who theatrically threw himself to the ground and thus earned the former Ajax man a red card.  Guardiola was haooy afterwards despite the farce and the result “we were playing with ten men and without a coach. But the pride in this team is great. With ten men we were still looking for the third goal and thats important”.

Marcus Berg sat out Hamburg`s one nil win over struggling Hertha Berlin.

Az Alkmaar`s Scandinavian contingent enjoyed a resounding 4-1 home win over Heerenveen. Swede`s Pontus Wernbloom and Rasmus Elm, Finn Niklas Moisander and Dane Simon Poulsen all played their part as Alkmaar came back from behind.

Former Elfsborg man Lasse Nilsson scored for Vitesse Arnhem as they drew 1-1 with fellow relegation candidates ADO Den Haag .

Ola Toivonen was sprung from the bench after only fifteen minutes but the Swede could do little as his PSV Eindhoven crashed to a shock  2-1 defeat at NAC Breda. The misery of their  first defeat of the season was compounded as FC Twente beat RKC Waalwijk 1-0, courtesy of a Kenneth Perez goal, to move two points clear of Fred Rutten`s men at the top of the Eredivisie.

PSV Were not the only side in Europe who lost for the first time this week. Sami Hyypia`s Bayer Leverkusen side went down 3-2 at struggling Nurnberg. The result ends their 25 game unbeaten run and blows the Bundesliga title race wide open.

Aalesund 1 – 3 Rosenborg

The Norwegian domestic season kicked off this Sunday as Rosenborg unsurprisingly got the better of Aalesund in the “Superfinale”, a showdown between last seasons league and cup champions. Reigning league champions Rosenborg won the Superfinale very much the same way they won the league last term – by producing a dominant if somewhat underwhelming performance.

“RBK won’t win the league playing like that”, defeated Aalesund-manager Kjetil Rekdal told the press after the game, which is pretty much what every Norwegian manager and pundit said about Rosenborg after every game last season, until Erik Hamrén’s under-appreciated bunch eventually wrapped up the title with several rounds left to go.

Rosenborg’s Kris Stadsgaard opened the scoring at a very cold Color Line-stadium after just seven minutes when his shot from just over 20 yards took a deflection off an AaFk-defender and flew past Anders Lindegaard in the Aalesund goal. Last season’s top-scorer in the league Rade Prica then pounced on a horrendous defensive gaffe by Aaleund’s Jonathan Parr and after his initial finish hit the post he was himself on hand to bury the rebound. Trond Olsen then made it three from close range after some clever work by winter-signing Fredrik Winsnes, before Peter Orry Larsen scored a wonderful consolation goal for Aalesund when he thumped home a superb dipping shot from range.

“It’s the earliest title I’ve ever won” Swedish success-monger Erik Hamrén told TV2, referring to the much debated early start to this year’s Norwegian season. While many claim playing football on these shores in early March is a bit mental, what with there being snow everywhere and all, Hamrén has no problem with the early start and points to the fact that a longer season could make it easier to avoid fixture-congestion in July and August when clubs have a bash at European competitions.

Norwegian season-previews to be published on these here hallowed pages in the coming week.

AIK Stockholm picked up where they left off yesterday, by beating IFK Goteborg 1-0 in the Swedish Super Cup Final.

The result sees last year’s double winners add further gold to an already impressive collection. The Stockholm based side have now won a staggering 31 trophies since their foundation in 1891. However this win under Mikael Stahre is the club’s first ever Super Cup achievement.

Antonio Flavio’s 26^th minute strike was the difference between the sides. Goteborg must be sick of the sight of the team from the capital, who pipped them to the title last year before beating them in the cup final too.

AIK won their first trophy in 1900 and few would bet against them regaining their Allsvenskan crown this year.

They begin their league campaign next Sunday as they host Allsvenskan new boys Mjallby IF at Rasunda.  Mjallby, who won the Superettan last year, will be keen to show they are capable of staying up in 2010 and there is no better way for them to do that than beating the reigning champions on their home turf.

Fixtures

The memory of Iceland’s first professional footballer, Albert Gudmundsson, has been commemorated with the unveiling of a statue in the capital of Reykjavik.

 The Football Association of Iceland (KSÍ) has unveiled a statue in honour of Gudmundsson, the man who paved the way for modern Icelandic stars to move abroad and  later became FA president.

 The statue stands outside the KSÍ headquarters in Laugardalur, Reykjavik, as a monument to Gudmundsson’s example as both player and administrator. Gudmundsson, who was born in 1923, is fondly remembered by all generations. His dedication and desire to fulfil his personal ambition saw him enter uncharted waters for an Icelandic player, as his travels took him from Valur Reykjavík to Rangers FC, Arsenal FC, Racing Club de Paris, AC Milan, AS Nancy-Lorraine and OGC Nice.

 After shining with local club Valur, Gudmundsson went to study in Scotland where he played as an amateur for Rangers before moving south to join Arsenal. In 1947 he joined Racing Club de Paris as a professional, and later wore the colours of AC Milan  where he suffered a serious knee injury . The break in the knee was thought to be permanent and it looked his career had come to an end. However the team doctor of rivals Inter Milan wanted to operate on him much to the anger of Milan who would not let this happen. Determined to pro long his playing days. Gudmundsson then bought out the remainder of his contract and underwent a succesful operation .He returned to France where he represented both Nancy and Nice before returning home to Iceland in 1954 and hanging up his boots.

 In 1967 he was awarded a silver badge by the KSÌ for his work in football. One  year later  he was elected as chairman of the association and held this position until 1973. When he stepped down that year, his honour was upgraded to a gold standard.

 Gudmundsson forged a career after football, in  both business and politics, serving as chairman of Reykjavik city council and later as the nation’s minister of finance and minister of industry. The former Valur hero also ran for president in 1980 but narrowly lost out to Vigdìs Finnbogadòttir . 

 He  continued to work in football, most notably holding the post of KSÍ president between 1968 and 1973. He remained a passionate supporter of the beautiful game and when other Icelandic players were offered professional contracts by foreign clubs ,Gudmundsson  helped ensure his compatriots got a good deal.

 After leaving politics, Gudmundsson returned to France as Icelandic ambassador from 1983 to 1989. He passed away in 1994 aged 70. 

His passion for the game leaves on through his son and former Iceland international Ingi Bjorn Albertsson.

His impact in the history of Icelandic football is forever revered.

Iceland currently have 53 players playing abroad, not bad for a little country marooned in the North Atlantic Ocean, or is it?

Consider the national teams of England, Spain and Italy. Most of the top stars who represent their countries on the international stage ply their trade at home. Contrast that with countries such as Ireland and Iceland , who don’t have great domestic leagues and their players are forced to go abroad in search of bigger opportunities.

What effect does this have?

While Ireland have  played at a handful of prestigious events that is a benefit they have over Iceland, who since joining FIFA in 1947, have not qualified for a major event. At present , such qualification seems miles away for a team that boasts some top stars we are all familiar with.

Now look at European club competitions. Ireland have come within touching distance of qualifying for the Champions League and Europa League in recent years, providing some memorable shocks along the way, but where has Iceland gone? Iceland`s progress at European club level is extremely slow and devoid of hope. It will be lightyears before any significant developments are made on this front unless something is done.

The Icelandic Football Association, otherwise known as KSÌ, will tell you that 153 clubs are resident on the island. How these clubs would crave the money that some of their compatriots put into foreign clubs. This is another familiar trend that Iceland have with Ireland, an Icelandic consortium opts to pump vast sums of money into West Ham United at the expense of a domestic club, while an Irish consortium does the exact same at fellow Premiership club Sunderland.

It just goes to show you, you may love your country and the game of football , but your in the business to add to your hefty bank balance.

Then Iceland`s   second richest man, Bjorgulfur Gudmundsson took over the Hammers in what seemed to be a good deal for all involved. The club cost him £85 million, what that could of done for the domestic league you can figure out for yourself.  Little did West Ham fans know what lay ahead. Gudmundsson became football`s main victim of the global economic downtur n and  joy turned to anger. With Iceland itself falling perilously deeper into the financial mire so too did Gudmundsson and his business empire.

As Gudmundsson edged towards the brink of bankruptcy ,West Ham were taken over by Icelandic bank Straumur, who it emerged had lent Gudmundsson the money to fund the takeover. West Ham were looked after by the bank and managed to keep their aheads above water. The biggest smile on the faces of  West Ham fans came when all links with Iceland were severed. They have since been taken over by well known football charachters David  Gold and David Sullivan, former owners of Birmingham City.

So, Gudmundsson borrowed a crazy some of money to invent what he labelled the Champions League dream in East London. That dream took off , on a piece of paper but unfortunately for some the true values of aspirations are not met on paper.

If Gudmundsson had of pumped a mere 5% of his fortune into the Icelandic national team or into the league , who knows what would have happened. Hell, maybe  he still would of had a penny in his pocket today. The people of Iceland don’t care about Gudmundsson and his past actions of flashing the cash, why would they , he could have lifted the spirits of the people by investing the money at home .But such is the fat cat hierarchy that is still strangling the life out of world football, he took his money abroad and wasted it. At least if some of the money was spent on football at home , he would have something to show for himself when all else fell apart but what has he now?

Premiership (4)

Herman Hreidarsson, Portsmouth FC

Gretar Steinsson, Bolton Wanderers

Eidur Gudjohnsen, Tottenham Hotspur

Joey Gudjonsson, FC Burnley

Championship (8):
Ivar Ingimarsson, FC Reading
Emil Hallfredsson, FC Barnsley
Brynjar Björn Gunnarsson, FC Reading
Aron Einar Gunnarsson, Coventry City
Heidar Helguson, FC Watford
Kári Árnason, Plymouth Argyle
Gunnar Heidar Thorvaldsson, FC Reading
Gylfi Sigurdsson, FC Reading

League 1, England (1):
Ármann Smári Björnsson, Hartlepool United

Æresdivisjonen, Nederland (1):
Arnór Smárason, SC Heerenveen

Premier League, Skottland (2):
Eggert Gunnthor Jónsson, Hearts
Kjartan Henry Finnbogason, Falkirk FC

Jupiler Liga, Belgia (3):
Arnar Vidarsson, Cercle Brügge
Bjarni Vidarsson, Roeselare
Hólmar Örn Eyjólfsson, Roeselare

Superligaen, Danmark (4):
Sölvi Geir Ottesen, SönderjyskE
Rúrik Gíslason, Odense
Stefán Gíslason, Brøndby
Ólafur Ingi Skúlason, SönderjyskE

1. divisjon, Danmark (1):
Sigmundur Kristjansson, Brabrand IF

Eliteserien Norge (11):
Arni Gautur Arason, Odd Grenland
Kristján Örn Sigurdsson, Hønefoss BK
Indridi Sigurdsson, Viking
Birkir Már Sævarsson, Brann
Birkir Bjarnason, Viking
Veigar Páll Gunnarsson, Stabæk
Ólafur Örn Bjarnason, Brann
Palmi Rafn Palmason, Stabæk
Gylfi Einarsson, Brann
Stefán Logi Magnússon, LSK
Björn Bergmann Sigurdarson, LSK

1. divisjon Norge (4):
Viktor Bjarki Arnarsson, Nybergsund
Gudmann Thorisson, Nybergsund
Arnar Darri Petursson, Lyn Oslo
Haukur Pall Sigurdsson, Alta IF

Allsvenskan (9):
Ragnar Sigurdsson, IFK Göteborg
Hjalmar Jonsson, IFK Göteborg
Theodor Elmar Bjarnason, IFK Göteborg.
Helgi Danielsson, Elfsborg.
Jonas Gudni Sævarson, Halmstad
Hallgrimur Jonasson, GAIS
Gudmundur Gunnarsson, GAIS
Gudjon Baldvinsson, GAIS
Eyjolfur Hedinsson, GAIS

Superettan, Sverige (5):
Ari Frey Skulason, GIF Sundsvall
David Vidarsson, Öster
Hannes Sigurdsson, GIF Sundsvall
Gunnar Thor Gunnarsson, IFK Norrköping
Sverrir Gardarsson, GIF Sundsvall

Ajax playmaker Christian Eriksen is delighted having made his Debut for Denmark  on Wednesday. Eriksen who was a late call up to the side, entered the proceedings in the 57 th minute, as the World Cup qualifiers went down 2-1 in Austria.

The former Odense star has gained well deserved praise for his performances in the Eredivisie having made his Ajax debut in a one all draw with Nac Breda in mid Janaury.

His performances In both the Eredivisie and   Europa league catapulted him into the eye of Danish manager Morten Olsen who wass eager to see him line out against Austria.

Speaking before the game ,Olsen Proclaimed “We have known about the exception qualities of Christian for a couple of years already. He is our man of the future “ .

Eriksen was voted Danish u17 talent of the year in 2008 and has since gone on to bigger and better things. After three years in the Odense youth set up he joined the Dutch giants for a fee believed to be close to £1 million. Since then his stock has rose and he quickly came through the Ajax youth ranks. After making his debut for the Amsterdam side, Eriksen outlined his ambition to keep a permanent position in the first team. He also stated his desire to play for his country, something which has since come through. Speaking after his debut , Eriksen said “ I know Morten Olsen is an admirer of my style of  play but it s important to keep my feet on the ground. Nevertheless, playing for Denmark will be great”.

The 18 year old star replaced  Daniel Jensen as the Danes searched for an equaliser that never came. He was beaming with pride after the match despite the defeat to the European minnows , “Things are going incredibly fast at the moment. I initially wanted to make it into Denmark under-21s by the end of the year and now I’ve already made my debut for the senior side. I’m absolutely delighted and will give my jersey a prominent place at home.”

Coinciding with his call up, Eriksen has given Ajax his word that he will stay on with them and sign a contract until 2014. The move is best for both parties as potential suitors hover around the midfield star. Eriksen however wants to remain in Holland “I`m very happy at Ajax and really want to stay here. I`m greatful to Martin Jol for giving me the chance to play and i can see myself really developing here”.

The news comes as Spanish giants Barcelona are the latest side to be linked with the star.

With a full card of friendlies it was impossible that all the favourites would win, just ask Morten Olsen and Denmark. Nonetheless it was a good night for the Nordic sides , with only two of six sides falling to defeat.

Slovakia 0-1 Norway

Rosenborg winger Morten Moldskred bagged the only goal as Norway defeated World Cup bound Slovakia in Zilina. It was Egil Olsen`s side`s third win in as many matches, following recent victories over South Africa and Switzerland . Norway are starting to show good form ahead of the European qualifiers , which begin at the end of the year, but first they must sit agonisingly through a World Cup, which they will not participate in.

Norway: Jon Knudsen, Tom Hogli, Kjetil Waehler, John Arne Riise, Brede Hangeland (Vadim Demidov, 74), Bjorn Helge Riise (Ciljan Skjelbred, 62), Henning Hauger, Morten Gamst Pedersen, Christian Grindheim (Alexander Tettey, 90), Daniel Braaten (Erik Huseklepp, 62), Morten Moldskred (Espen Ruud, 85).

Austria 2-1 Denmark

Denmark suffered a shocking defeat at the hands of European minnows Austria. The Austrians , who are currently ranked 56^th in the world, went ahead early on before Nicklas Bendtner equalised with a well taken header. Austria regained the lead shortly before half time when Roma Wallner sealed the win for Didi Constantini`s team.

Denmark will face the Netherlands, Japan and Cameroon in the group stages of the World Cup this summer. The Danes will really need to step up their game to have any chance of qualifying from a tricky group.

“We always want to win, but I knew before the match it was going to get difficult,” Denmark coach Morten Olsen said. “We had to bring some young and inexperienced players. It’s important to have everyone available in two, three months from now.”

Denmark: Thomas Sorensen, Simon Kjaer, Per Kroldrup, Leon Jessen (Michael Lumb, 46), Michael Silberbauer, Thomas Kahlenberg, Daniel Jensen (Christian Eriksen, 56), William Kvist Jorgensen (Peter Nymann, 76), Michael Krohn-Dehli, Dennis Rommedahl (Soeren Rieks, 46), Nicklas Bendtner (Rakjo Lekic, 61).

Cyprus 0-0 Iceland

Cyprus and Iceland played out a dull and unexciting friendly in Larnaca. The fixture showed why both teams are no where near World Cup qualification.

Iceland: Arni Arason (Gunnleifur Gunnleifson, 39), Solvi Ottesen, Kari Arnason, Ragnar Sigurdsson (Arnor Adalsteinsson, 67), Helci Danielsson, Rurik Gislason, Aron Gunnarsson, Olafur Skulason, Emil Hallfredsson, Heidar Helguson.

Malta 1-2 Finland

Finland came from a goal behind to beat Malta . Roman Eremenko equalised from the penalty spot for the Finns before substitute Mika Vayrynen popped up with a timely winner.

Manager Stuart Baxter offered a thorough analysis of the match afterwards “We knew that to come here and play well without a full team would be difficult. Malta made it hard for us but we expected this because even Sweden had problems when they played here.

“The first 20 minutes were hectic for us because we didn’t do well in opening up play and Malta were very lively. Gradually, we gained control and we continued like that in the second half. I’m satisfied that we scored two goals and won the game.

“Overall, it was a very good exercise for my team.”

Finland: P. Enckelman (‘46 O. Fredrikson), V. Lampi, N. Moisander, J. Raitala, R. Eremenko, K. Hamalainen (77 J. Kolkka), J. Litmanen (‘46 M. Varyrynen), T. Sparv (‘46 T. Tainio), J. Johansson (‘83 T. Pukki), R. Porokara, T. Kallio (‘57 J. Lyyski).

Wales 0-1 Sweden

Erik Hamren enjoyed a winning start to his tenure as Sweden boss as a solitary Johan Elmander goal sealed the win at the Liverty Stadium. Elmander will be relieved to have finally found the net. The striker is still revered in his country but must try and find some from for his club, Bolton Wanderers, as they fight to remain in the Premiership. Working under Rosenborg manager Hamren may be the catalyst he needs.

Hamren was full of optimism after the match “we shall improve a lot after this result. For me the basis is that winning mentality, if you have that then the play will come“, he said.

Sweden: Eddie Gustafsson, Olof Mellberg, Daniel Majstorovic, Behrang Safari (Oscar Wendt, 62), Sebastian Larsson, Rasmus Elm (Tobias Hysen, 59), Anders Svensson, Kim Kallstrom (Viktor Elm, 81), Johan Elmander (Pontus Wernbloom, 59), Ola Toivonen, Christian Wilhelmsson (Mikael Lustig, 73).

Georgia 2-1 Estonia

A last gasp striker from David Siradze seled a 2-1 win for Georgia over Estonia. After falling one behind, Ats Purje believed his late equaliser was enough to send both sides home happy but that was not the case as a depleted Estonian outfit came up short in Tbilisi.

Sami Ristilä celebrates Drogheda's first ever championship. Photo cortesy of Drogheda United FC

The Boyne Valley In County Louth is a place often affiliated with the legends of Irish myths, some legends are born and others are made. Over a thousand miles away in Valkeakoski, Finland on August 15th 1974 ,a new icon for the valley was born.

Sami Ristilä made his first appearance for his hometown club FC Haka at the age of 17 . After five years at Tehttaan Kenttä  he left the club he dearly loved and moved to FC Zwolle in Holland. Spells at FC Jokerit and Mypa would follow before 2002 saw his second coming at Haka.

Though the combative midfielder only featured 49 times over the following three years, he did enough to win a Veikkausliga winners medal in 2004.The Haka story was far from over but a new fairytale was about to begin.

Drogheda United brought Ristilä to the League of Ireland in 2005 for what would prove to be the most successful period of his career. The performances of the Finnish international at the heartbeat of the Drogs midfield saw him become a firm fans’ favourite. His ability to score goals when they were dearly needed further cemented his position amongst the United faithful.

Journalist Eimear Taffe remarked shortly after his arrival that “Sami is an extremely technically gifted player with an excellent footballing brain . His experience will be vital to all those around him”.Taffe was proven right as the Finn became a catalyst for Drogheda`s success.

During his silverware laden spell at United Park, Sami captured the FAI Cup in 2005, two Setanta Cup winners medals in 2006 and 2007, and in that same year he helped the club etch their name into Irish football history by claiming their first League of Ireland title.

That inaugural title victory paved the way for the Boynesiders to grace the Champions League Qualifying rounds. This was not Ristila’s first taste of European Football at the club as they had during his time played in the Uefa Cup, clocking up victories against HJK Helsinki and Libertas in the first rounds in 2006 and 2007, only to be eliminated in the second rounds by IK Start and Helsingborgs respectively.

Damien Lynch played with Sami during both cup runs and is full of praise for the Finnish star “I loved playing with Sami. He always gave 100 % and the supporters knew that. He was technically brilliant and the best trainer I have ever seen. He boasts a top pedigree and is an overall nice lad. His ability to use both feet is tremendous”.

Mark McCadden backed up Lynch’s claims. McCadden is a renowned football journalist who purely deals with League Of Ireland affairs. ”Sami was very intelligent and cultural. His creative awareness allowed him to find positions others wouldn’t think of. His technical ability was far superior to most of our players”.

While the mighty Drogs became used to Europe, they could not have predicted their fate in 2008. A first round 3-1 aggregate win over Estonians Levadia Tallinn set up a tasty but tricky tie against Dynamo Kiev. The Ukrainians left Ireland with a 2-1 lead heading into the second leg, while many thought the second leg was a mere formality, Doolin`s men proved otherwise. Ristila and Co battled back twice after going a goal down, with the tie hanging by a knife edge at  2-2, one more goal would have seen the Drogs through. Late efforts by Adam Hughes and Shane Robinson proved in vein, as a determined Drogheda were dumped out by an undeserving Kiev team.

Ristilä later moved into management at Drogheda,  a club that was by now dear to his heart. He had a unique relationship with the supporters and was dearly loved for his efforts on the pitch. Sami took up the role of player/coach alongside Paul Doolin and also became head of youth development at the club.

Declan O`Brien played with Ristilä during the Drogs famous European adventure. O’Brien – who himself made a mark in Europe last season as he helped St Patricks Athletic to the brink of the Europa League group stages – had nothing but admiration for Ristila .”Sami is a top quality player, he is definitely one of the finest ever to have played in the League Of Ireland. His work rate is what impresses me most”.

January 2009 marked the end of an era for Ristilä. After four years of service in his adopted home it was time for him to head back to his native Finland and once again pull on the Haka jersey.The team were flying high by May, standing proudly on top of the table but as fortunes dipped legendary Haka Goalkeeper and then manager Olli Huttunen was sacked.  Sami assumed the role as player/coach on September 7 and guided the nine time champions to a sixth placed finish.

The Veikkausliiga currently sits in 29th position in the Uefa ranking of leagues, one place ahead of the League of Ireland. Ristila maintains that Finnish clubs are more financially viable than their Irish counterparts, although they boast less media coverage. While the Veikkausliiga does manage to gather larger attendances, Ristilä proclaims “ football in Finland is played at a slower pace but technically its superior to what is on offer in Ireland. However in terms of the quality of the player, I believe it is equal”.

The two time capped Finnish international may soon hang his boots up as injury limits his playing time. Nonetheless he will be looking to guide the nine time league champions to a better finish in 2010.

His time in Ireland will never be forgotten. On a personal level I have witnessed four Scandinavians grace the League Of Ireland. The others include Norwegian Glen Atle Larsen (Ex St Pats and Kongsvinger), Finnish goalkeeper Miiko Vilmunen who Drogheda also signed from Haka  and Swedish shot stopper Ola Tidman who represented Derry City.

This trio of Scandinavians had a forgetful time in Ireland, although Vilmunen enjoyed a rare moment of glory by saving two penalties in the Setanta Cup Final, whereas Ristilä is one of the finest foreign players ever to have graced the league. McCadden declared that “Sami was the most successful to have ever graced our league. It is difficult for technical players to settle in here but he adapted well and had no problems”.

Drogheda fans would long to one day see the current Haka manager take the reigns at United Park. This is a view envisaged by lifelong Drogs fan Martin Boland (63) “Sami worked his socks off for this club. Not many fans would know but he also did his fair share of work behind the scenes. Wherever his managerial career will take him, it will certainly be bright. There would be nobody I would rather see in charge of our great club than the great man himself”.

Football in the Faroe Islands is similar to football everywhere else in some senses. Those who have he privilege to watch the English premiership will follow that but few will look closer to home to see the product that is on their doorsteps.

Lets contrast the Faroe Islands with the  Republic Of Ireland, the home of Faroes manager Brian Kerr. Football in Ireland is massive and the national team are very strong opponents under the guidance of Giovanni Trappatoni. Yet the domestic league in Ireland is suffering as many prefer to watch what`s happening across the channel in England. It`s estimated that over 70 % of the Irish soccer public have no interest in the League of Ireland, which has produced teams that are coming ever more closer to a European berth.

This is a similar story to what is happening in the Faroes although it is still a shame that many will not follow their own domestic brand of football. It is also staggering how two countries where domestic football is not strong have different fortunes on the national scene. Ireland are regarded as a dangerous outfit while the Faroes are minnows and have been for a long time. To some extent this is inevitable given the population difference, but the common problems for domestic football are similar in Ireland and most Nordic countries, not just the Faroes.

The Faroes founded their own Premier League, now known as Vodafonedeildin, in 1942. The league boasts ten clubs and operates off a system whereby two teams are relegated and promoted every season.

Lets have a closer look at the teams that compete in this league and face the endless task of trying to woo bigger crowds away from watching English football on their armchairs and into their stadiums.

Ahead of the new season lets look at the teams that will compete in the top flight  in order of where they finished during 2009.

HB Torshavn are one of the oldest and most successful teams in the league. Hailing from the capital , HB were founded in 1904 and have since won 20 league titles,the latest been in 2009 and is a record in the Nordic land.

EB Streymur finished second last year and earned a Europa League qualifying spot. They have only won one league title to date and that came in 2008. The side from Streymes will be hoping to boost their European form after going down 5-0 to Apoel Nicosia and 4-0 to Manchester City in the past two seasons.

Vikingur also qualified for the Europa League after finishing in 3^rd. Vikingur is a result of a merger between GÌ Gota and Leirvik Ìf in 2008 and the club won the Faroe Islands cup last time out. Both clubs existed for decades prior to merging.

NSI Runavik finished fourth last season and are the final entrants to the Europa League from the Faroes. Runavik are not a successful side but to boast a credible cup pedigree which adds to their sole league success, which came in 2007. Romanian Pauli Poulsen currently manages the side who have won two Faroese Cups and taken part in four other finals.

B68 Toftir are the yo yo club of Faroese football. Having been promoted in 1980 the club went on to win three league titles before relegation came back to haunt them in 2004. A year later they bounced straight back by winning the first division , but they struggled through the 2006 season in the top flight and found themselves relegated yet again, only to return in 2007, after winning the first division again. Toftir will be hoping to climb the table further this year after recent 6^th and 5^th place finishes.The club have a European pedigree having competed in eight matches however that pedigree doesn’t boast any positive results.

AB Argir are fresh off their first season in the top flight .They will be delighted having managed to stay up, after originally earning promotion as the second place team in the first division in 2008. Argir boast arguably the best fans in the league and this is renowned throughout the Islands. Tòràlvur Stenberg is regarded as the saviour of AB. As chairman he took the club from the third division to the premier division in 2006. Sadly he did not see his team play in the top flight as he lost a long battle with cancer. His sons ,Jonas and Heoin, both represent AB at present.

ÌF Fuglafjordur finished 7^th last season and will be looking to consolidate their position as a top flight club in 2010. Fuglafjordur will be hoping to pull away from the threat of relegation which seems to constantly hover over the club. Rògvi Jacobsen is the bright light of the club which was founded in 1946.Jacobsen joined the club in 2009 and is widely regarded as one of the players ever to have played for the Faroes. He has over fifty caps and is the Faroes all time top scorer with ten goals. Fuglafjordur fans will be hoping he can make a stronger impact this year .

B36 Torshavn are the other team from the capital. They have  a successful history but narrowly avoided relegation in 2009. The nine time champions will be hoping the talent emerging from their impressive academy will propel them higher up the table this time around .Clashes with arch rivals HB are bound to excite and manager Sigfridur Clementsen will be aiming to get his side back into Europe where they have advanced beyond the first round in two recent seasons, 2005 and 2006 by beating both Birkikara FC (Malta) and ÌBV Vestmannaeyar (Iceland).

FC Suouroy return to the top flight as champions after winning the first division. Based in Vagur the club once known as VB/Sumba has adopted a new name for the future. Based on the most southern island of the state manager Jon Pauli Olsen will be hoping he can keep the refurbished club afloat.

B71 Sandoy finished as runners up in 1.Deild last year and are no strangers to the top flight. Sandoy have won the first division four times since their inception in 1970 but their greatest feat was winning the Premier League in 1989. The club also boasts one cup success which came in 1993. The aim for the club this time will be to consolidate their position in the premier league as they have been up and down the divisions in recent years.

Predictions:

It is hard to look by another title victory for HB. However B36 should make their way back towards the top this year and this will hopefully lead to an exciting title race. Nonetheless i have no doubt that HB will be the team to beat.

NFN has been pondering and wondering and thought about writing a match report on Finland v Malta, but nobody – absolutely nobody – has seen that match, so here is Glenn’s weekend roundup with highlights links instead.

It was a good weekend for the Danes but an agonising one for their Norwegian counterparts, one of whom lost the first major final of the season.

Nicklas Bendtner scored for the second consecutive game running as Arsenal beat Stoke City 3-1 at the Britannia stadium. Bendtner slotted the ball home past fellow Dane Thomas Sorensen to level things up as the Gunners fell behind early. Sorensen kept Stoke into the game until their resistance was shattered late on in a game that will be remembered for a horrific injury that broke the legs of Arsenal midfielder Aaron Ramsey. The look of shock on the faces of Bendtner and his team mates said it all. But the Danish striker was very upset after the match “my goal and the win doesnt matter. Aaron is one of my best friends and we will go on and win the title for him”.

Dennis Rommedahl capped off a resounding four nil win for Ajax over Fc Utrecht. The Dane grabbed the last goal as the hosts ran riot.

Jon Dahl Tomasson scored the second goal as Feyenoord secured a late win at Groningen. Fredrik Stenman was not content with his goal last week an sought to add another however the defender was thwarted by the Rotterdam side as he and his team mates battled back from two goals down. Swede Andreas Granqvist levelled matters in the dying minutes, he thought he had earned a draw but Ron Vlaar prodded the ball over the line to secure a win for Mario Been`s side.

Simon Kjaer featured as Palermo earned a two nil win away to Juventus. The suprise result sees the Dane`s side climb above the Old Lady and into 4th place.

Kasper Schmeichel kept a clean sheet as his Notts County side mauled Hereford United to earn a five nil win under new  manager Steve Cotterill .

Brian Jensen did his best as Burnley tried in vain to beat a Portsmouth side that has now entered administration. The Danish stopper had his blushes saved early on as an own goal that nutmegged him was chalked off. In a very eventful game Jensen“s long punt forward was latched onto by Martin Paterson who added a delightful finish to put the score at one all, after Portsmouth went ahead through Frederic Piquionne. Jensen made some fine saves including a penalty from Jamie O`Hara. However he could not keep out a second penalty from Hassan Yebda, which earned Portsmouth a 2-1 win.

Mads Junker opened the scoring as Roda JC earned a crucial away win over struggling ADO Den Haag on Friday Night. The Kerkrade side grabbed a last ditch winner which pushes them to within four points of a Europa League place. The Dane took his tally to eleven for the season with this strike.

Sebastian Larsson crashed a free kick off the bar but luckily for the Swede his Birmingham City side still manage to run out one nil winners over Wigan Athletic. Last time these sides met back in December the Swede bagged two goals as his side earned a hard fought 3-2 win ovwer Roberto Martinez`s men. This match will be remembered for an odd injury to the linesman, Liam Ridgewell had made a tackle on James McCarthy at the corner flag and knocked the corner flag into the face of the official who was cut open by the incident. The linesman was not able to continue his duties at St Andrews.

PSV Eindhoven ran out 5-1 winners at home to RKC Waalwijk. Many would predict that Swedish star Ola Toivonen would have been on the scoresheet but after finding the net against Hamburg on Thursday, he could not add a further strike. Their midweek Europa League exit has not deterred their title push.

Jussi Jaaskelainen stood firm in goal to earn his side a vital one nil win at home to Wolves. Bolton achieved only there second victory under Owen Coyle. Johan Elmander was unlucky not to score as he had three chances but was thwarted by the Wolves keeper, but that goal he craves so badly eludes him for another week. A bit of luck that saw David Jones crash his free off Jaaskelainen`s post also aided the Trotters win.

Sami Hyypia`s Bayer Leverkusen were left frustrated after drawing nil all with Cologne. However the result leaves the Finn`s side 24 games unbeaten as they moved one point clear at the top of the table on Saturday. There stay at the summit was cut short as Bayern Munich`s beat Hamburg one nil on Sunday to regain top spot.

Aron Gunnarsson was in the thick of the action as Coventry City earned a 2-1 win over Scunthorpe United at the Ricoh Arena. The Icelandic star forced Joe Murphy into a spectacular save from one of his early efforts. Gunnarsson also saw another effort go wide before he was hauled down on the edge of the area. From the resulting free kick his team mate Sammy Clingan fired home what proved to be the winner.

Gylfi Sigurdsson was inspirational as Reading tore into Sheffield Wednesday at the Madjeski, Winning five nil. Last time the Owls visited Berkshire they were on the wrong end of a six nil thrashing. The excellent Sigurdsson created four chances in the first half and played his part as the Royals went in two nil up at the interval. He was also a key figure in the second half before been subbed with ten minutes remaining. The Icelander is certainly on the road to bigger and better things, a fact buoyed by his late winner against West Brom in midweek. Manager Brian McDermott was full of praise for his team “That was a really big game and i am delighted that we got the points in the way that we did. It is a marvellous result for this club”.

Icelandic Defender Eggert Jonsson grabbed the only goal as Hearts earned a one nil win away to Aberdeen. And what a goal it was as the versatile star slammed home a bicycle kick. Afterwards he labelled it “my best goal ever”. He further added that “I`ve probably done it a few times in training but it was just one of those things,the ball was up in the air and i`ve hit it ,i was so glad to see it go in”.

Thomas Rogne was hauled off with a injury after only a half an hour of a tense Old Firm Derby. The Norwegian will be no doubt frustrated as Rangers Grabbed a last ditch goal to secure a one nil win, bragging rights and the SPL title as Celtic now have a mountain to climb. Dane Morten Rasmussen was primed to come on as a sub but the sending off of Scott Brown changed that as Celtic manager Tony Mowbray was forced to reshuffle his midfield.

John Carew was sprung from the bench to be Aston Villa`s saviour but the big Norwegian watched on in agony as his side went down 2-1 to Manchester United in the Carling Cup final at Wembley.

Brede Hangeland was the only Scandinavian who started for Fulham as they played out a nil all draw with Sunderland. The draw sees the Cottagers unbeaten in eight games, including a one all draw away to Shakhtar Donetsk on Thursday in the Europa League, where the Norwegian bagged his sides goal.

John Arne Riise`s Roma side threw away a two nil lead at Napoli, who forced a draw with a last minute penalty. The former Liverpool man will be frustrated as it ended his sides seven match winning run. It also adds further misery after a shocking midweek exit in the Europa League at the hands of Panathinaikos.

Morten Gamst Pedersen battled valiantly to Save Blackburn but they fell to a 2-1 away defeat to Liverpool in a very physical game. The former Tromso star swung in a dangerous free kick in the last minute which was latched on to by Christopher Samba but he could not beat Pepe Reina.

The NFN transfer news column returns afresh with a new title and ever improved content. Well that’s at least what evil marketing men and women want you to believe with these kinds of blatant attempts at re-branding. In truth, the Round-up will be exactly as inefficient, lazy and crass as the Weekly was in providing news, gossip, outright lies and stuff people called ‘Gaz’ or ‘Bez’ confide to the Round-up at the pub after last orders on Saturdays. In short, ‘a rose by any other name’ and so on an so forth.

So here we go then. While youth has been all the rage in Veikkausliiga for years, the 2010 season is defined by nothing if not by the golden oldies, the thirty-somethings, the seasoned professionals who were already wrestling with wolves and ploughing fields swarming with adders while the rest of use were still speaking in incoherent monosyllables and picking raisins off buns (because raisin are yuck!). You might think that people who have earned a good living and played at some of the biggest stadiums on the planet would, at 30 plus, rather start enjoying a well-earned early retirement (somewhere where the average temperature is over 1,9 degrees Celsius) than trample in slush and mud before a handful of spectators in the middle of October. To the delight of Veikkausliiga fans, these people are made from harder stuff than the Round-up. Now that Jonatan Johansson and Toni Kuivasto are back, the average age of Veikkausliiga players has sky-rocketed and the Round-up thinks it’s about bloody time. The kids are definitely all right but you cannot underrate experience: Jari Litmanen, Johansson, Aki Riihilahti, Janne Saarinen and Kuivasto, total age 363, total international appearances 1029, will rule Veikkausliiga next season.

Lets move on to the transfer then. As everyone must know by now, TPS pulled the biggest coup of the season by signing Johansson on a one-year contract. The 34-year-old Finnish international of 101 appearances and 22 goals returns to Turku after fourteen years spent in Estonia, Scotland, England and Sweden. Johansson’s return will give Veikkausliiga in general and TPS’s inexperienced squad in particular a needed boost. TPS also snapped up Toni Kolehmainen, formerly of AZ Alkmaar and AC Oulu, who signed a two-year deal with last season’s bronze medallists. Kolehmainen will have big shoes to fill in the TPS midfield and, with this in mind, the Round-up recommends an extended pie and beef-cake diet to the undoubtedly talented but ever so slight U21 regular.

Meanwhile, FC Sedu have been busy making short-term plans for an uncertain future. Toni Kuivasto signed a one-year deal (having spent a decade in Norway and Sweden) as did Jukka Santala, formerly of HJK, Glasgow Rangers and FC Nordsjælland. The returnee duo should be able to strengthen Haka’s unimpressive squad considerably but since we are talking about a club where the doors are swinging as frequently as in a busy Helsinki night club, who knows what will happen.

While HJK have been away building up Veikkausliiga’s international reputation (enjoying modest success in Moscow and beating AIK 2-1 in Seinäjoki), the personnel has changed quite a bit at Finnair Stadium. Paulus Roiha, Jukka Sauso and Mikko Hauhia have left (to Åtvidaberg, Jönköpings Södra and Akademisk Boldklub respectively) and since no new signings have been made, it actually might be the case that HJK fans will see more home-grown products in action next season. Well, kicking balls to the stands at half-times at least.

Former HJK favourite Iiro Aalto, who is also the holder of one of the poorest scoring records in Veikkausliiga history, left TPS for his home town club Rauman Pallo-Iirot (currently playing in the second division). Apparently, at 32, the full back wants to combine football with studying which is completely understandable. However, the Round-up will, for some inexplicable reason, actually miss seeing Iiro and his swaying gait on the Veikkausliiga greens.

Oh, and speaking of green, TamU were utterly destroyed by Örebro despite fielding a strong starting eleven. The Round-up knows that the Swedes are a few weeks away from their season kick-off and all that, but to get trashed 6-0 is just embarrassing (How does HJK’s defeat of the reigning Allsvenskan champions look to the cynics now?).

Meanwhile, VPS have been busy in the transfer market. The Vaasa club signed former FC Inter forward Valtter Laaksonen from Sogndal and Kwon Jung-Hyuk. The former will replace Henri Sillanpää who left for GAIS. The South-Korean is remembered from RoPS where he got used to conceding goals by the bucketful last season, usually for no fault of his own though. VPS also signed someone called Greg Eckhardt from some obscure university team from the US of A. Might sound a bit dodgy but apparently the 21-year-old has captained four different youth national teams. The Round-up is convinced that the American must be quite good then. Having been the captain for the duration of fifteen minutes in a playground match at the age of twelve, the Round-up knows how special you have to be in order to be selected a captain.

Atalanta also know when they come across a good player and so Henri Toivomäki will be spending the spring in Bergamo. The 18-year-old FC Lahti full back signed a six-month loan deal with the Serie A club and will be playing in their Primavera squad (who are apparently pretty decent). And nifty lower-division goal-getter Pekka Sihvola will finally get his big break in Veikkausliiga at Lahti, as will former Klubi 04 midfielder Janne Törmänen.

That’s your lot then. Feel free to add any mouth-watering gossip or fresh tittle-tattle below.

Transfers:

Iiro Aalto

From: TPS; To: Rauman Pallo-Iirot; 2009: 23/0; Total: 200/1; Position: D; Date of birth: 19/7/77

Greg Eckhardt

From: Clemson Tigers; To: VPS; 2009: 0/0; Total: 0/0; Position: D; Date of birth: 1/7/89

Mikko Hauhia

From: HJK; To: Akademisk Boldklub; 2009: 25/0; Total: 158/3; Position: D; Date of birth: 3/9/84

Jonatan Johansson

From: St. Johnstone; To: TPS; 2009: 0/0; Total: 32/6; Position: F; Date of birth: 16/8/75

Toni Kolehmainen

From: AC Oulu; To: TPS; 2009: 5/1; Total: 5/1; Position: M; Date of birth: 1/1/90

Toni Kuivasto

From: Djurgårdens IF; To: FC Haka; 2009: 0/0; Total: 173/9; Position: D; Date of birth: 31/12/75

Kwon Jung-Hyuk

From: RoPS; To: VPS; 2009: 20/0; Total: 20/0; Position: G; Date of birth: 8/2/78

Valtter Laaksonen

From: Sogndal; To: VPS; 2009: 0/0; Total: 54/13; Position: F; Date of birth: 3/5/84

Paulus Roiha

From: HJK; To: Åtvidaberg; 2009: 8/0; Total: 93/40; Position: F; Date of birth: 3/8/80

Jukka Santala

From: Mjällby AIF; To: FC Haka; 2009: 0/0; Total: 21/3; Position: F; Date of birth: 10/4/85

Jukka Sauso

From: HJK; To: Jönköpings Södra; 2009: 0/0; Total: 126/4; Position: D; Date of birth: 20/6/82

Pekka Sihvola

From: FC Hämeenlinna; To: FC Lahti; 2009: 0/0; Total: 4/0; Position: F; Date of birth: 22/4/84

Henri Sillanpää

From: VPS; To: GAIS; 2009: 21/0; Total: 221/0; Position: G; Date of birth: 4/6/79

Janne Törmänen

From: Klubi 04; To: FC Lahti; 2009: 0/0; Total: 0/0; Position: M; Date of birth: 29/1/89