The landscape of the national team changed completely in just over 24 hours – VG

For now, many people’s favorite candidate to lead Norway’s A men’s national team is unemployed. The news that Ståle Solbakken has ended up at FC Copenhagen does something to the whole landscape of Norwegian football.

And in Football Norway, there are many who want it. Text message from a Norwegian soccer coach today:

“Now NFF must bet on Solbakken”, with various arguments as to why NFF should replace Lars Lagerbäck with Ståle Solbakken, now that the opportunity exists.

And with Solbakken available, the pressure on Lars Lagerbäck increases, consciously or unconsciously. A victory against Romania on Sunday will almost be demanded, the same against Northern Ireland on Wednesday. Because a situation has suddenly arisen in which each outcome suddenly becomes even more decisive.

Soccer is brutal like this: suddenly, the result is everything.

There are two different scenarios: one where you know what you have, but not what you can get, which has been the situation around the national team and Lagerbäck for a long time.

A completely different situation arises when you really know what else you CAN achieve.

And it’s free.

In the past, discussions have often stopped at that: a coach must be bought for free from a club, which can be difficult in practice and expensive.

That argument now disappeared in a boardroom in Copenhagen. And that leads to Solbakken becoming a very natural name in the discussion about who will lead the Norwegian national team in the coming years. Lars Lagerbäck’s candidate as his own successor quickly becomes his assistant, Per Joar Hansen. At NFF, some in the management are too weak for Leif Gunnar Smerud, the current U21 boss.

In my opinion, none of these reach Ståle Solbakken.

It’s no secret that Solbakken has long been my favorite to lead the Norwegian soccer team. It was my number one when Per-Mathias Høgmo succeeded Drillo, and it was my number one when Lars Lagerbäck succeeded Høgmo.

Simply because I believe that Ståle Solbakken is the best leader, both on and off the field. Over time, he has shown his side as a motivator and team builder. In Copenhagen, he still had to renew the team because the players wanted to move on. And he has managed to create a new team, every time. Yes, it has had resources. But that in itself is never enough. You have to put it together the right way.

For someone to now say that Solbakken is bored and unmotivated is the exact opposite of my experience after a conversation with him just over a week ago. But two players in the transfer window (Peter Ankersen and “Zanka” Jørgensen) Solbakken was motivated and convinced that FC Copenhagen’s season would change.

After all, it’s only been two months since FCK came close to beating Manchester United of the Europa League in the quarter-finals. At the same time, it caused FCK not to have the same pre-season period as the other teams.

On Saturday he was still finished at the club, he wants a new direction.

And this opens up for Ståle Solbakken as coach of the Norwegian national team, actually for the third time. In the NFF, it can always be used against Solbakken’s candidacy that he said “yes” and “no” before. But the most important thing should be if you are motivated for work now, and I know you are. Solbakken also knows very well that there can be no more doubts, if he gets into position. Then it becomes “yes” or “no” immediately.

But we can quickly get into a situation where the NFF must act quickly, if they want to secure Solbakken. Because you will receive, if you have not received it yet, offers from clubs in Europe.

So Solbakken’s farewell in Copenhagen has created a confusion in the system, a confusion that the Norwegian Football Association has to deal with one way or another, whether they want to or not. Because there are many who love Solbakken, especially within the NFF. I know that.

In my opinion, the NFF must make some quick decisions here: if they want Ståle Solbakken to be the man who can lead Norway’s national A team to the championship, then they must act quickly, probably much faster than they thought. And it will possibly ruin today’s plans.

In NFF, they recounted the fact that Lars Lagerbäck has a contract until 2022 and that Ståle Solbakken has a contract with FC Copenhagen until the summer of 2023.

Now the landscape has changed, from a boardroom in Copenhagen.

And the Norwegian Football Association must deal with that.

If they want the best candidate.

For the players, it’s simple: if they like Lars Lagerbäck as well as they say, then they can prove it in the next two games: then they increase the chances that they will retain him in 2021 as well.