PREVIEW: MIDWEEK NORWEGIAN ACTION Arch Bell - Tuesday, June 23, 2009
Troy Perkins looks for his second consecutive shutout against Bodo/Glimt while Mikkel Diskerud and Stabaek get a crack at league leaders Rosenborg in midweek Eliteserien action.
Valerenga - Bodo/Glimt
Goalkeeper Troy Perkins and Valerenga return home to try to continue their ascension up the Eliteserien standings when they host Bodo/Glimt on Wednesday at Ullevall Stadion in Oslo.
The Ohio native will start in his normal spot between the pipes for head coach Tor Ole Skullerud and look to register back to back shutouts for the second time this season.
After a rough start, Valerenga has steadily risen to fourth place in the league table and are within shouting distance of second.
Bodo/Glimt are coming off a rough week where they were thumped by Texan Jay Needham and 1. Division club Alta in Norwegian Cup play and then split the points in a lackluster draw with Lillestorm.
Skullerud will still miss the services of team captain Daniel Freidheim Holm who is recuperating from hip surgery.
Midfielders Dawda Leigh and Freddy dos Santos will be gameday decisions for the hosts. Leigh suffered a thigh strain while dos Santos has been hindered by a nagging groin injury.
Bodo/Glimt head coach Kare Ingerbrigsten will have a full squad available for the visitors.
Rosenborg - Stabaek
The defending Eliteserien champions hit the road to take on league leaders and traditional league heavyweight Rosenborg
Forward Mikkel Diskerud saw limited action over the weekend against Start but should receive more minutes coming off the bench in the clash with the Trondheim club.
Since falling to Aalesund at the end of May, Stabaek has strung together three staright league wins, all by shutout, and will look for a similar result at Lerkendal Stadion on Wednesday.
The hosts have seemingly regained their championship pedigree which saw them win 15 of the previous 20 Eliteserien championships.
Under the direction of head coach Erik Hamren, Rosenborg have gone unbeaten in their last 14 matches and currently sit in first place, a distant seven points ahead of second place Molde.
Stabaek head man Jon Jonsson will field a full squad while Hamren will be without Slovakian midfielder Marek Sapara who is still recovering from a back injury.
Start - Sandefjord
After getting their clocks cleaned at Stabaek over the weekend, Start return home on Wednesday to face Sandefjord.
The American duo of Hunter Freeman and Clarence Goodson hope to reunite in the hosts' backfield after each missed a start in the last two matches.
Freeman missed last week's midweek Norwegian Cup penalty kicks defeat to 1. Division club Lov - Ham while Goodson sat out Saturday's 5 - 0 loss at Stabaek with an illness.
The month of June has been unkind to Start as their last three Eliteserien matches have yielded a paltry single point.
Head coach Knot Torum has seen his squad fall from second to fifth place in just three rounds of play.
Torum will be without forward Bernt Hulsker who is completing his two game suspension from his ill - timed red card during the final minute of Start's last home match versus Molde.
Sandefjord head coach and Irishman Patrick Walker has a full squad available and will most likely have Wisconsin native and goalkeeper Matthew Allen starting on the bench.
Notodden – Nybergsund
Connor Tobin is expected to take up his usual spot in Nybergsund's defense when they take on struggling Notodden FK on Tuesday evening.
While their 17 points through their first 11 games is enough to have Nybergsund within reaching distance of the top three, recent weeks have seen the team fail to find consistency as they have only pulled together a pair of wins in comparison to four losses and two draws over their previous eight games.
They will have some confidence of gaining the full three points against Notodden, whose seasonlong struggles have them in currently 13th place and coping with a tough midweek loss to Odd Grenland to be knocked out of the Norwegian Cup.
Notodden's previous three games have been their worst run of the season, losing all three by a combined 7 - 0 scoreline, which will give Tobin and his teammates hopes of a confidence - building win.
Notes
Adin Brown continues to recuperate from heel surgery and will not factor in Aalesund's match against Brann on Thursday.
Brian Waltrip is unlikely to suit up for Molde as they travel to Lillestrom on Thursday.
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