Hegerberg and Hansen grumbled – do too many (star) chefs spoil Norway broth? – Sports

Hardly any Women’s World Cup attack is as highly decorated as Norway’s. But there seems to be an ego problem.

Aspirations were high when Norway launched their European Nations Cup campaign last year. With 6 wins in as many matches and a goal difference of 34:1, they just made it past the playoffs. In addition, Ada Hegerberg, a larger-than-life figure in Norwegian football, is back in the team. The woman who won the Champions League 6 times with Lyon and scored 59 goals in the “First Division” – a record.

After a break of nearly 5 years, Hegerberg returned to the national team. Disagreements with the Football Association over bonuses prompted her to resign temporarily. But the tournament turned into a disaster. A 0: 8 defeat against England was followed by a 0: 1 against Austria, which meant the preliminary round. Hegerberg was always on the field with the exception of a quarter of an hour, but was left without a goal.

With a nostalgic look at more successful times in light of the 2023 World Cup, the team has been given another element: Haig Rays has been named head coach. No other Norwegian woman (or any other Norwegian) represents success more than she does. From 1993 to 2000, as an active player, she led her colors to European, World and Olympic victories.

But even under Reese, history threatens to repeat itself. Once again I made a career through the playoffs, but after a sudden bankruptcy against New Zealand at the start of the tournament, the “grasshoppers” returned to the wall. Against Switzerland says on Tuesday: Loss is forbidden.

There is a kind of disharmony in the squad, which is made up of a number of world stars – in addition to Hegerberg and, no doubt, Caroline Graham Hansen (Barcelona), Guru Rhett (Chelsea) and Frieda Mannum (Arsenal) inexplicably away after the New Zealand game. There was, for example, Hegerberg’s brief outburst of anger, which was as intense as it was full of gestures after the final whistle.

In an interview, Hegerberg said afterwards: “I feel very disappointed, and we should all feel that way. Everything we did was fragmented.” Graham Hansen also found clear words and said resignedly: “We haven’t accomplished anything. We go from tournament to tournament and lose performance.