In the 13th round of the Norwegian First League, the match between Valerenga and Bodo/Glimt promises an exciting game with hopefully plenty of goals and actions in the final thirds. Both teams are currently overperforming and can look into the future with confidence. Glimt are undoubtedly the surprise of the year, leading the pack with 34 points won from the possible 36. The home side sits at a comfortable 4th place with 22 points and will look to close the gap to the leaders.
In this tactical analysis, we will focus on the expected lineups and employed tactics from both sides and by the end of the article, we aim to predict whether Valerenga have what it takes to hand Glimt’s first defeat in the season.
Expected lineups
Both managers prefer a steady 4-3-3 with a constant starting eleven but it is likely that both teams will have absences to solve in defence. Valerenga will be without their starting left-back, Felix Horn Myhre, who collected his fourth yellow card against Brann. To make things worse, the team’s second-choice left-back, Sam Adekugbe picked up an injury and probably won’t be ready against Glimt.
The visitors had a tough time against Stromsgodset last time out as Brede Moe (right centre-back) and Fredrik Bjorkan (left-back) had to be subbed off in the first half. Whether they can be ready against Valerenga is still in question but their replacements, Marius Hoibraaten and Aleksander Foosnaes can commit to their eventual first-team duties.
Valerenga: A simple way against pressing
The build-up starts with the goalkeeper, the 19-year-old Kristoffer Klaesson. His duty is to be the traditional, ‘route one’ keeper without overcomplicating anything on the ball. He directs his kicks towards the target man, Benjamin Stokke or Matthias Vilhjalmsson, while the teammates form a compact pack behind, ready for the ‘rebounds’.
In case of a centre-back possession, the backline is expanded in the full width of the pitch. This way they can avoid losses in dangerous positions as the opposition has to cover greater areas in the final third. With the two centre-backs, Ivan Nasberg and Jonatan Nation staying wide, they provide extra space for Fredrik Jensen who drops deep to get the ball. He is the deep-lying playmaker for Valerenga whose primary duty is to connect the defence with the midfield.
Dag Eliev Fagermo instructs his team to be direct and to play balls behind the opposition backline. This requires great awareness to invite the opponent to their own half and draw up player runs which create space in the midfield. With Jensen coming for the ball, he usually drags a midfielder out of place. The box-to-box midfielders occupy more advanced positions, easing the pressing passively. This way, Valerenga have a reduced opportunity to play out of the back. When the full-backs receive the ball, they have two options. Either they launch a long ball towards the striker or they wait for the wingers to come short.
