The Invasion

good luck !

Good luck mate, I like the custom graphics!

Good idea, all the best with it

loving the sound of this mate, will be following

The one and only European cup victory comes from 1987 when Swedish football celebrated Goteburgs fantastic victory in the now Europa League, with only fellow Swedes, Malmos brief appearnce in the 1979 Champions League final against Nottingham Forest being their only other claim to European success.



Starting at the very bottom I hope to manage my way to bringing a team from each of the five main Scandinavian Countries to the very top of European football. It doesn't matter how or with who, just as long as I can bring the trophy back from the warmth of mainland Europe and into the land of snow and lava...

Good luck!

Good luck with this pal.

Looking forward to this! Good luck!

So starting the game at the very bottom could quite possibly be the only easy part of this entire challenge.



With the lowest possible experience, all the Scandinavian Leagues ready and raring to go and a January start date I set off on my adventure by applying for every single job going, handing my limited CV in to no less then twenty four clubs.



Expecting very little in the way of interest I was suprised to not only have a job available to me but to actually have a choice of where I wanted to go. With ten job offers received the very next day it appeared Scandinavia was in dire need of some new managerial blood for the coming season and not wishing to leave my potential host nations waiting I quickly set about narrowing down my options.

It didnt take long before I left myself with three clear options to mull over.



Algard are Norweigan Second Division heavyweights. Having spent most of their ninety eight year existance in the league its fair to say they are more then ready for bigger and a better things and with a relativley massive eleven thousand in the transfer budget and room for a lower league Ronaldo in the wages theres plenty of opportunity for a bright young thing from the home of football to come in and take the club to higher places.



Relative newcomers to the Norweigan Third Divisions, Egersund have little in the way of reputation but plenty in terms of wages. With a massive three thousand pounds to play with, its a lower league managers dream, being able to create almost an entirley new team and set about taking on the rest of the league in their own way. However it remains to be seen if the tiny club with a kick ass logo can even attract any players worth filling the budget.



Frigg. Lets be honest its an awesome name for a football team. Middle of the run, average budgets and a deal to sort out before being able to turn them into title contenders but its still an interesting prospect. The team hail from the capital of Norway and with a decent run of promotions and some attractive football they could easilly see themselves overtaking Valerenga to becoming the biggest team from Oslo.

It was worth considering but one things for certain. I'm heading to Norway...

So with the three options breifly considered, I quickly made up my mind and settled for what I hoped would provide me with the most fun for the coming seasons...


With little to no credible history a huge potential fan base and a decent squad and backroom staff in place, it was a relativley easy decision to make. I have no plans to take them all the way to the top of Norweigan Football but as I suspect I might be here for some time I figured it makes sense to choose a team that I can hopefully atleast give a gentle push in the right direction.


With Twenty Four players currently on the books, I will be quick to try and free up some room in the wage budget to mold this team into a promotion chasing side but truth be told there is already a basis for a very good side here.

Promising strikers Eide and Cham are both well on their way to becoming reliable finishers at this level and the solid Sandstad appears to be the midfield general every lower league side needs, however its the back line that really holds the quality with young Vethe showing potential to be an unbeatable centre back in the near future with Johan Nas proving to be the standout player of the entire team.



The formidable defender will hopefully prove to be the solid foundation of my back line and boy will he be tested this season as I look to unveil a new formation on the unsuspecting Norweigan masses.

With an entire month until even the preseason begins Ive got plenty of time to reform a squad here, so without further delays, I'm going to start cutting loose the dead wood and bringing in some bright new talent to take this club one step closer to the Norweigan First Division.

I have very rarely if all ever based an entire team around a tactic and a philosophy but with a new challenge ahead of me it seems only right to embrace my new home countries with a formation befitting of there tough, yet majestic natural beauty.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

I give to you my game changer...The Pine Tree.



My take on the much under used "Christmas tree" formation. Throwing caution into the wind, Ive opted to ditch the width at the back and rely entirely on the strength of full blooded Scandinavian central defenders. What we lack in defensive depth we will more then make up for in midfield wizardry as no less then six players now operate in the middle of the park with the lone striker key to the entire thing as we look to feed him with deadly balls from the wings and two attacking midfielders.

Its a bold strategy and one that quite frankly shouldnt work but I have afaith in this inspired design and come hell or highwater this 3-6-1 formation will one day make its way to a Champions League trophy.

First game at the helm of Frigg and the first taste of defeat. A punishing first half from our first division opponents Mjondalen saw them score three in fifteen minutes but a spirited second half display almost saw an impressive comeback as Ramsland and Seeberg both make impressive starts to their Frigg careers with a well taken goal each.

A game against fellow second division opposition from the third group saw us take a convincing victory. Key defender Nas popped up with the opening goal from a corner in nine minutes and Mazurkiewicz continued the goal scoring form of our new arrivals with a goal of his own. The only downside of an encouraging game, was injuries to back up goalkeeper Voien and attacking midfielder Tonne both ruled out for five weeks.

Non-League opposition this time and a victory wrapped up within just six minutes. Right midfielder Badivuku netted a rapid brace as it looked like we would romp to victory but Gjovik-Lyn put up a stubborn fight, picking up a well earned goal before the end of the first half, with the remaining forty five minutes passing without incident.

Ten players were shown the door, with eight of them leaving within my first three days of reign at Frigg. It appears I have a ruthless streak...



Non league sides Korsvoll and Ullern were quick to take advantage of our leaving players, scooping up all six of the final departures between them as they look to assemble their own promotion chasing side in the darkest depths of the Norweigan game.

Having made absolutley no money from player sales, it was clear that all my signings from the coming transfer window were going to be from out of contract players, or those that clubs are willing to literally give away for nothing. It was going to be a case of trying to pick the best from a rather large and hairy bad bunch.





My first signing for my Scandinavian challenge is of course...Polish. The versatile midfielder can play in any position in the middle of the field, which is handy seeing as how I have six of them to fill. For now we will look to utilise Mazurkiewicz's creativity and passing ability by having him play just behind the striker as one of our duo of attacking midfielders.



I might be willing to throw caution into the wind by only fielding three defenders but I'm not about to abandon our defensive duties entirely. Veteran defender Haraldsen arrives at Frigg with a good deal of defensive ability. Arguably hes not exactly going to be a rock at the back but he will certainly be useful as a back up defender.



Haraldsen might be here to make up the numbers but Pal Schjerve is certainly going to make an instant impact. The solid defender will make a fine addition to our team, combining his solid defensive abilities with his natural talent for getting his head on the end of any ball, I'm hoping he get his debut season at Frigg off to a flying start.



The wide players will play a crucial role in the forth coming season and Seeberg will be sure to be leading the charge down the wings, with his strong crossing ability hopefully set to cause the opposition defenders all kinds of problems in the coming season.



The young Ramsland is set to partner Mazurk as an attacking midfielder in the near future but for now the eighteen year old will be picking up some much needed experience from the bench as we look to transform him into the lethal player he has the potential to become.



The defensive midfield position is key to our entire formation, so I was keen to strengthen it before the season began. Out of contract Heia has the ability to be a menancing ball wining midfielder, with his strong mental attitude certain to keep him battling for the ball right until the final whistle.




The squad has been streamlined down to a very manageable twenty players following a brief but very eventful window for Frigg.

We've not made any outlandish or major signings but some solid and reliable players have bolstered the ranks as we look to make the push towards promotion. With just under a month remaining till preseason, its going to be a busy time of team blending and tactics as our new arrivals join the team in trying to master my 3-6-1 formation.

More none league opposition and this time the old boys at the team showed their class as they ran riot. Four goals showed our domination of the game as our midfield ran Tonsberg to ruins in style. Another promising step forward in our preseason.

Once again we played first division opposition and were soundly beaten. Our pre-season has been full of early snatched goals and this time it was Strommen who took advantage to grab the lead and one which they would keep a firm grip of, doubling their lead deep into in the second half to seal a comfortable victory. We're clearly not at first division standard yet.

The final game of our pre-season see us calmly see off our smaller neighbours, as new signing Haraldsen scored yet another early goal, with reliable midfielder Stig Haddal scoring just before the final whistle to send non-league Oslo City packing following an easy victory in the capital.

A solid, if predictable pre-season. Defeats to First divisions, Mjondalen in my debut and Strommen were the only hiccups along the way to an overwise succesful warm up for the team.

The formation appears to be working reasonably well and the new signings have taken no time at all to blend into the team.

My main concern was that our three man defence would prove to be too little at this level but with three clean sheets and only one goal conceded against opposition who weren't in the division above us, things are looking far more solid then I expected.

As usual though the pre-season is never a reliable judge of how things are going to pan out come kick off time but I'm certainly looking forward to it...in an "oh god please work" kind of way.

Eugh.

I was hoping to turn the Frogner Stadion into a fortress but we open our account infront of the Oslo faithful with a frustrating defeat. Cham hit the net for the third time in two games and it looked like we were set for another comfortable victory but an unusual mistake from Nas gifted Mo with an equaliser before our lack of width at the back was exploited when a floated cross from out wide was volleyed home from 10 yards.

The Pine Tree Formation needs work!

So the first game of the season is upon us. Its a new dawn for Frigg and a baptism of icy water as I cautiously dip my toes into Scandinavian football.



Well that wasn't so bad.

Mehrez marked his first game at the club with a rapid goal taking just 240 seconds to find the back of the net, with lone striker Cham putting a glossy finish on the game with two second half goals to cap a perfect start to the season and fill the club with new found optimism.

The Pine Tree formation is working!

Before the season kicks off there was still time for some final transfer activity as my new scout, Scotland's finest Eighty Seven year old, Bobby Roberts alerted me to the presence of a player I couldn't resist.

Before signing him though I had to clear some space.



When checking through the entire team (I literally write down every position on a notepad...its bad) I realised I could probably get away with just having two full strikers and pray to Odin that they don't get injured throughout the season, unfortunately for Kaas that meant his departure was inevitable and with no one willing to sign the promising youngster, I was forced to push him out onto the free market.

However there was little time to feel sorry for him...




The attacking midfield positions are key to the entire formation and then I was informed about young Johnny Mehrez I could resist. The eighteen year old, already has the ability to slide seamlessly into the first team and with regular game time ahead of him and bags of potential, the young yanky could quickly become the key player in the team.

My first taste of the Norweigan Cup and it certainly didnt disappoint.

American attacking midfielder Mehrez continued to impress, scoring the opening goal and it seem his fine strike would be enough to seal the victory against first divisions Ull/Kisa but with just two minutes remaining a hopeful long ball, somehow found its man and he duly turned Schjarve to force extra time. Stand in left midfielder Debesay soon restored our lead with a stunning first time volley from the edge of the box but once again Ull/Kisa hit back with another fortunate goal. Penalties were on.

In a tense shootout it proved to be the keepers who would decide it as ten penalties a piece left both stoppers needing to score. Brattbaken calmly stepped up and stroked his penalty home, before palming away his opposite numbers tame effort to win the game.

Thrilling stuff...and this is only the first round.

Following this, interesting with the Norwegian lower leagues.

Always interested in Scandinavian careers. Hopefully you can find some success. A promising start anyways! Good luck.

Thanks for the support Gents, I appreciate it all!

Another game at home and another defeat. This time in convincing fashion. It took just three minutes for our resolve to fall apart and Ostsiden quickly ran out victors with two late goals putting a shine on their scoreline and punishing us even more.

Just the four games for my first month in charge. A comfortable three goal victory against Finnsnes in my first competitive game seemed to suggest we were going to walk this league but no sooner had I begun to believe in it myself, we were immediately put to the sword in front of a disappointed home crowd by Mo.

A lifeless draw with Kvik Halden was the only game I didnt feature this month but a well earned point against the current leaders is nothing to be shrugged at, however the thrilling victory against Adeccoligaen opposition was undoubtedly the highlight, as goalkeeper Brattbakken finally squeezed us past Ull/Kisa and into the second round, following a nerve wracking penalty shoot out.

I did quite ok with three defenders when I managed La Serena in Chile, but I never made it work in Europe. Hope you can do better!

Enjoying this career so far, keep it up!