Tag: Ada Hegerberg

Norway just cannot catch a break at this World Cup.

The Group A favorites, after stumbling to a dispiriting loss to New Zealand and only managing a scoreless draw versus Switzerland, will play a must-win game against the Philippines without injured star Ada Hegerberg.

The Lyon striker did not play against the Swiss, withdrawing from the match just seconds before kickoff with what Norway said was a groin injury.

The 28-year-old has not recovered in time to play any part against the Malditas, who have surprised observers by picking up a win and staying in the mix to go through with the right result on Sunday.

“There was too little time to make it to the match against the Philippines,” said Hegerberg in a statement published by Reuters. “I have faith in the team and will continue to work to be ready for a possible round of 16 game.”

“[Hegerberg] is not ready for this game, it came too early after her injury,” Norway manager Hege Riise told reporters at a pre-match press conference. “The medical staff have worked to see if [her return] was possible. It turned out today that it was not.”

Riise added that Norway’s medical team will keep working with Hegerberg with the aim of getting her ready in time for a knockout round match, acknowledging that her side must also clinch a place in the round of 16 to hold up its end of the bargain.

Problems mounting for Norway

With a roster stacked with midfielders and forwards playing at some of Europe’s best clubs, Norway was a very popular pick to win a weaker Group A, and to potentially advance beyond the round of 16 as well.

However, a shocking performance in the tournament’s opening game saw them outplayed and beaten by New Zealand in what was the Football Ferns’ first-ever World Cup win.

Despite a better result against Switzerland, things only got worse: Hegerberg picked up her injury doing one last short sprint — the kind of run players do before any professional game — moments from kickoff.

After that 0-0 draw, Riise drew public criticism from Caroline Graham Hansen after the star winger — along with Barcelona teammate Ingrid Engen — was surprisingly dropped to the bench for what the Norway boss said were tactical reasons.

Graham Hansen issued a public apology in the days that followed, though that statement was less about the content of her disagreements and more about making them public at the wrong time.

All of this comes as Norway faces a very difficult path out of Group A. They must beat the Philippines. They’ll also need the right result between New Zealand and Switzerland, which will be played simultaneously.

If the Football Ferns get a second win, Norway would need the scorelines of their victory and the Swiss loss to allow them to make up a goal difference deficit of three to squeak into second place. If Switzerland can beat the hosts, Norway’s path is more clear: they would finish second on four points, with New Zealand in third on three.

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Norway’s World Cup is rapidly spinning towards becoming a debacle.

The favorites in Group A suffered a stunning loss in the tournament’s first game to New Zealand, a result compounded by a flat, mystifyingly conservative performance.

Head coach Hege Riise then shocked most observers by announcing that she would be dropping Barcelona duo Caroline Graham Hansen and Ingrid Engen for their second match against Switzerland.

Norway would go on to register a scoreless draw against the Swiss, a result that only just barely kept the Gresshoppene alive in a group they were expected to stroll through.

Graham Hansen and Engen would both figure into the match as substitutes, but after the game, it sounded like that choice went down like a lead balloon.

“It’s tough. I don’t know what I can say,” Graham Hansen told broadcaster ViaPlay at full time. “There’s not much I can say, I feel like I’m standing here with my hands tied.”

“I feel I have been stepped on for a year. People talk all the time about standing together as a team and a nation, but I feel that in the last year I’ve just accepted [this treatment],” continued Graham Hansen. “I’m not going to go into who here in the press, but perhaps you understand between the lines what is happening and where the shoe is pressing.

“It’s not like you should get anything for free in this life, but I thought I had earned a certain respect. It wasn’t like that. Maybe you have to look at yourself in the mirror and believe less about myself.”

Speaking to Norwegian broadcaster TV2, Graham Hansen added that she disagreed with the rationale Riise apparently gave for the decision.

“I do not agree with the justification, or that one is put out in that way. That’s how it is,” said Graham Hansen. “I can’t create any chaos no matter how much I want to. I don’t want to be a bitter egoist who only thinks about herself.”

Reporters asked Riise about Graham Hansen’s remarks in a post-match press conference, but the coach was not inclined to discuss them at length.

“I don’t think I should comment on that. Caro will be responsible for that. I haven’t seen it or heard it, so I can’t relate to [her comments],” said Riise. “I made an assessment of what we have been working on for a long time, ever since we arrived… These are things we will handle internally. There is a lot of frustration that we didn’t win. Caroline is entitled to be frustrated and entitled to express her option.”

Hegerberg injury more trouble for Norway

Graham Hansen’s discontent isn’t Norway’s only problem. Star striker Ada Hegerberg withdrew literally during the team’s last huddle before kicking off with an apparent groin injury.

The moment Ada Hegerberg was pulled into the locker room just before kickoff ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/mUcWqQsJmG

— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) July 25, 2023

Norway scrambled to add Sophie Román Haug to their starting lineup, with Hegerberg playing no part in the match.

The Lyon forward took to social media to say that she felt “discomfort” in a sprint after the national anthems, and that there was a collective agreement that playing would have been too great a risk.

I felt discomfort when sprinting right after the anthems. We decided with the staff that no risk should be taken and no subs should be wasted in such an important game for us, and we all trusted Sophie, Karina, and the team to do the job, which they did. We move on. 🇳🇴 pic.twitter.com/nMeC5psw0p

— Ada S Hegerberg (@AdaStolsmo) July 25, 2023

Norway may not have been listed among the absolute favorites in Australia and New Zealand, but with Graham Hansen, Engen, Hegerberg, and Chelsea playmaker Guro Reiten, they have the talent to trouble any team on the planet.

However, this rocky start to the World Cup is coming after a disastrous Euro 2022 that saw them lose 8-0 to England and crash out in the group stage. Despite her legendary status as a player during Norway’s glory days, Riise appears to be facing a daunting task to get the team back on course.

As things stand, Norway must beat the Philippines to have a chance of escaping a group they were supposed to win handily. They’ll very likely need to do so by multiple goals as well, given that a draw or a New Zealand win in the group’s other game would leave Norway tied with either the hosts or Switzerland on four points.

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