In the fourth round of the UEFA Europa League B match in the early hours of this morning, the Norwegian team defeated the Austrian team by a score of 1-5, after the match, the Norwegian team manager Sol Bakken in an interview with NRK in-depth analysis of the loss and its impact on the team.
Solbakken was the first to admit that the loss was a heavy blow to the team and the players, especially considering that the Norwegians have played well in recent matches and have hardly given their opponents many chances. However, despite the unsatisfactory result, Solbakken said that it did not affect his confidence in the team's program. He understands that in top level soccer, everything can go against you, especially when it comes to controversial goals at the last minute, which is part of soccer.
Speaking on where the blame belongs, Solbakken took the initiative to take the blame, arguing that as the manager, he should have stopped the decline in time when the team was 1-3 down. He specifically mentioned the controversial penalty kick call, arguing that such a call may only be called once in 100 times, but the team failed to get its act together and instead fell into panic and confusion.
As for the much criticized player, Hanche Olsen, Solbakken was understanding and supportive. He argued that Olsen was part of the team's outstanding performance in the first half, and that the penalty conceded could not be blamed entirely on him as it was just an accidental fall. Solbakken's words certainly took some of the psychological burden off Olsen and the rest of the team.
