Hello and welcome to another episode of Monday Night Football where we will continue to ruin some perfectly good fixtures through the lens of CM9798. Last week we looked across Europe for an upset finding the German league to be the place if you’re looking for an edge of your seat kind of season, but for this week’s episode, we are going to revisit the Norwegian League we created in 2019! We’ll take a look at some fixtures from the up and coming weekend that would have been in the Eliteserien:

Stabaek vs. Valerenga

Back in 1997, the league was known as the Tippeligaen. First up we’re off to the Nadderud Stadion to take in Stabaek vs. Valerenga. Back in 1997 Stabaek finished 5^th qualifying them for the Intertoto Cup.

Valerenga were plying their trade in the second tier 1. Divisjon where they pipped Moss to the title by 1-point earning their place in the next season’s Tippeligaen, they also won the Norwegian Cup whilst in the second tier, a fantastic feat, qualifying for the Cup Winners Cup.

The Result:

We open with a thriller as it all goes Valeronga for Stabaek. A battle of the attackers as the eventual cup winners come out on top.

Aalesund vs. Rosenborg

Aalesund were another side in the second tier of Norwegian football and went on to avoid relegation by just 1-point finishing 10^th.

Rosenborg would go on to win the Tippeligaen by 11 points with a whopping goal difference of +67. Sigurd Rushfeldt would finish top scorer with almost a third of their goals.

The Result:

It’s very possible the 1. Divisjon side had been on the aale before this match. That said, there’s a reason Rosenborg blew the league away.

Bodo/Glimt vs. Molde

Bodo/Glimt would have an average season in the top division, missing out on Europe by a point, Stig Johansen would trouble the goal-scoring charts earning him a move to Southampton in the January (reflected in the patched database we’ll be playing).

Molde would finish 4^th qualifying for the UEFA Cup with Odd Inge Olsen their top scorer even though he was a midfielder/defender.

The Result:

A tight game with a ‘glimt’ of hope in the second half late on but unfortunately, they encountered a stubborn Molde that even Barry Scott couldn’t get rid of.

Haugesund vs. Start

See Bodo/Glimt. Scrapping by in mid-table not too far from relegation, Haugesund had an inconspicuous season to forget.

Start finished 4^th in the second tier, missing out on promotion play-offs by the fortune of a negative goal difference.

The Result:

A bad start. The Nigerian’s of Haugesund running the game from beginning to end. Despite their name, they just couldn’t get going not troubling the Haugesund ‘keeper until the 65^th minute.

Sarpsborg vs. Stromgodset

Sarpsborg would finish rock bottom of the second tier, relegated to 2. Divisjon scoring just 19 goals in 26 games.

Stromsgodset would finish 3^rd in the Tippeligaen, qualifying for the UEFA Cup, their top scorer Jostein Flo of Sheffield United fame.

The Result:

A Massive upset. Whoever scouted the Sarpsborg players was taking the p***. A team that finished bottom of 1. Divisjon has quite possibly the best players in the Norwegian league. A Soder-ing experience for the gods.

Mjondalen vs. Brann

Mjondalen would finish 8^th in Group 3 of the 2. Divisjon, comfortably avoiding the relegation battle by 8 points.

Brann would be Rosenborg’s closest challengers in the Tippeligaen finishing 2^nd qualifying for the UEFA Cup with that man, Mons Ivar Mjelde their top scorer that season.

The Result:

This is a HUGE upset. That said Brann had three key players out injured. Mjelde just couldn’t out-do Rotevaten. A Stellander performance from Mjondalen.

And that is a wrap on another edition of Monday Night Football. I hope you have enjoyed our spin on this week. If you want to test your wits with the Norwegian teams, you can download them here, just make sure you select the Scottish league which has been replaced with Norwegian sides. Let us know how you get on!

You can follow Andrew on twitter: @KingOfTheRooks