Kjetil Knutsen Tactics At Bodø/Glimt 2022: Why Europe’s Sweet Scandinavian Darlings Have Turned Sour – Tactical Analysis

FK Bodø/Glimt quickly became everybody’s Scandinavian darling over the last few seasons.

In 2020, under the guidance of Kjetil Knutsen, the Norwegian side lifted the Eliteserien title for the first time in its history.

Glimt did so in style too, scoring 103 goals in 30 games, winning the league by 19 points, and losing merely one match all season.

Norway’s emerging giants lost some incredible talents after their inaugural championship victory, with Philip Zinckernagel and Jens Petter Hauge shifted on to Watford and AC Milan, respectively.

It was expected that their dominance would be short-lived, yet 2021 through early 2022 was even better.

Knutsen’s killers retained the league title and even reached the quarter-final of the UEFA Europa Conference before losing out to the eventual winners AS Roma.

Earlier in the season, Glimt displayed one of the most memorable performances in European competition, putting Jose Mourinhos side to the sword with a 6-1 victory at the Aspmyra Stadion, handing the legendary coach the heaviest defeat of his career.

Nevertheless, after another solid year, Bodø/Glimt were butchered.

Erik Botheim was sold in January 2022, along with star midfielder Patrick Berg, left-back Fredrik André Bjørkan, and central defender Marius Lode.

Looking to complete the three-peat of title wins this season, Bodø/Glimt have found themselves slowly sinking instead. Knutsen, who was in the running for the vacant head coach positions at Norwich City and Burnley, is now staring down an eleven-point mountainous gap at the summit of the table.

This article will be a tactical analysis of Bodø/Glimt’s struggles so far this season.

It will be an analysis in the form of a team scout report, looking at why their tactics have let them down.

It sounds incredibly redundant to pinpoint their issues down to merely a loss of quality in the squad.

While it’s certainly been a factor, there are clear deficiencies on the field of play, too, from a tactical perspective.

Squad profile and formation

Firstly though, let’s start by being redundant, shall we? Bodø/Glimt have seen fewer and fewer players under the age of 23 receive minutes so far in the league this season. The squad is certainly not an ageing one, but most players are well into their peak years or are spilling into the over 30 category.

In 2020, Knutsen boasted the youngest squad in the league, making his achievement all the more impressive. However, in the current campaign, Bodø/Glimt have been resigned to being the eighth-youngest, or eighth-oldest depending on whether you see the glass as half full or half empty.

With the exception of midfielders Hugo Vetlesen and Elias Kristoffersen Hagen, most of Bodø/Glimt’s young stars have struggled to reach 300 minutes yet this season.

In