Norway stick with coach after qualification failure

Norway boss Stale Solbakken has been handed a vote of confidence by his FA’s president ahead of next month’s Euro 2024 trip to Scotland after their qualification failure.

But Lise Klaveness admitted the country’s disastrous late collapse to Scotland in the 2-1 defeat in Oslo in the summer had shattered them.

The Dark Blues qualified for the European Championships last week after Norway failed to beat Spain at home in a tame 1-0 defeat.

They are five points behind Scotland having played a game more and still have to come to Hampden for what will be a dead rubber match for them.

Solbakken has been heavily criticised in his homeland for the campaign, but only signed a new deal in May.

Klaveness insisted the Norwegian FA still believes in him ahead of their trip to Glasgow. She said: “We stand by Stale.

It’s a long-term plan. We extended with Stale at a time when it was already a bit uncertain.

“We had taken one point against Georgia away, zero points against Spain, but we have full confidence in him.

“We knew what we were doing because we didn’t believe, and I still don’t believe, that we would be in a better place with another coach.

“I think he is the right person to take this project forward. That is still my strong opinion, and he still has the board’s trust.

“Of course we are disappointed over the qualifiers as a whole. We have actually played some very good matches – away against Spain for example.

“But we know the Scotland game was decisive. We were very good until the last five minutes. That was a massive disappointment.”