The coach of the Norwegian national football team has recounted a mishap that occurred this week during his players’ training session in preparation for the Nations League.
This week, while preparing for its entry into the Nations League (this Friday at 4:00 p.m. on the Kazakhstan pitch), Norway was surprised to see the arrival of teams from an anti-doping agency responsible for carrying out tests. So far, nothing unusual since unannounced tests are frequent on Scandinavian international players in the middle of preparation.
But the agency’s employees’ request caught the attention of the Norwegian leaders. The samples to be taken concerned six players: star striker Erling Haaland, Jørgen Strand Larsen, Antonio Nusa, Oscar Bobb, Einar Gundersen and Jørgen Juve. The first three on the list complied with the request but not the third, who was injured and therefore not called up by the coach…
But there is something even more annoying because the last two internationals were also not present at the gathering. And for good reason, they died several decades ago. Jørgen Juve, the national team’s all-time top scorer with 33 goals, died in 1983 at the age of 76. Einar Gundersen, who scored 126 goals, died in 1962.
« “Is this a hidden camera?”
Ståle Solbakken
“It was serious. So we had to call the anti-doping agency and ask them, ‘Is this a hidden camera?'”commented amused coach Ståle Solbakken, not holding a grudge, before adding “Einar Gundersen and Jørgen Juve were called up. It was a bit late.” And to conclude on the subject, still in a joking tone: «Tests negative sur Jørgen et Einar.» The anti-doping agency has recognized a “big mistake” emphasizing that the Norwegian selection had “took this mistake in a humorous way.”
