Molde boss congratulates Glimt with the gold – VG

AKER STADION (VG) (MFK-KBK 2–2) Molde were one minute away from being dethroned as league champions, but a whiz by Fredrik Aursnes (24) postponed Bodø / Glimt’s gold celebration. Coach Erling Moe still hands out the gold to the northerners.

When the clock here at Aker Stadium ticked towards 90 minutes, Bodø / Glimt looked to be crowned league champion on Sunday night. Because with the Molde loss, the Romsdalers would no longer have a theoretical opportunity to regain the lead.

But 24-year-old Aursnes refused to let that happen. With a hard ankle kick from around 16 meters, the midfield star equalized to 2-2.

In parallel, Bodø / Glimt crushed table jumbo Aalesund. With six league rounds left, Molde is a full 18 points behind and has a far worse goal difference than the northerners. That Erling Moe’s men managed to postpone their gold party does not mean much to the boss himself.

– No, it basically does not. It may be fun for them to settle it against Rosenborg next time, but not for us. Just congratulate them on that. Then we get other “fights” about what is left, Moe says to VG.

– So you congratulate Glimt with the gold now?

– Yes, we can do that.

Moe despaired

Etzaz Hussain (27) headed Molde in the lead after 12 minutes, but only 11 minutes later Amahl Pellegrino (30) and Faris Pemi (30) had turned the match around with their respective goals.

Molde was the dominant team throughout the match, but two personal mistakes cost the team all the points.

First, Henry Wingo dropped the mark on Pellegrino who easily placed 1-1. Then Sheriff Sinyan slept completely on a post from Liridon Kalludra. It perceived Pemi who jerked in front of the Molde stopper and stabbed in 1-2.

On the sidelines, Moe stood screaming in despair.

– I think we have a very good start. We drive them well and get 1-0, but then it is too bad of us that we sleep as we do on the two setbacks. We solve our work tasks poorly both in advance and when the posts arrive. We do not take them out and are not old enough. That is what helps to destroy the overall picture for us, but based on how close and tough the match program has been, I think we stand the distance well, says the Moldes boss.

Among other things, he was pleased that the team had the most possession. In the end, romsdalingene ended up having the ball 60 percent of the time.

The rescue

On a medium Molde day where Kristiansund defended well in a compact 4-5-1 formation, however, Aursnes finally found an opening.

The midfielder had time to charge the shooting foot and used the opportunity to hammer in 2-2 at the back.

– It was good to get a score and not lose the match. We got a hope towards the end to take all three points, but it was okay, says Aursnes to VG

– Does it mean anything to postpone Glimt’s gold party?

– The gold will probably end up in Bodø this year anyway. It’s the same for us when it happens. We just have to focus on ourselves, win matches and secure 2nd place.

– How would you describe your season this year versus last year when you won the series?

– It was quite stable last year. We did not go on any slams and won steadily. This year it has been more up and down. We had a really bad period a month ago, when we went a few games without winning. Now we have entered a good track again in the last month. But it was hard not to win today, says Aursnes.

Proud KBK boss

After Rosenborg lost to Viking in Stavanger, Molde retains 2nd place in the Eliteserien with a two-point clearance to Trøndelag. KBK remains in 6th place.

– There is respect for the fight we are carrying out today. When we end up as early as we do, it is very easy to get too much respect for the opponent we face today – but we turn it into something positive, says coach Christian Michelsen to VG, before he continues:

– We show character strength. There’s a mentality in this gang – we never give up. We work our way into the fight, turning it around and holding it almost all the way out. Molde are good at the end and can put pressure on us, but still I am proud of the way we implement. Bendik Bye has a great chance of 2-1 to us. If he puts it on, the fight is over.

One who set one of his chances is fiery Pellegrino. The elite series’ top scorer scored goal number 21 for the season when he equalized to 1-1. Still, the victory slipped just before the end.

– It’s very bitter. That’s a good ending. We make a perfect away match for large parts of the match. I feel like we’re hanging out after the first quarter. The last 10 minutes they come into our box, but it’s not dangerous. When he gets that chance from 16 meters, you know it is dangerous at least seven out of 10 times, Pellegrino says to VG.

Odd Iversen holds the record for most goals in one season since the top division became one division in 1963. The Trøndelag player put in 30 times in 1968. Pellegrino’s ambition is to go past the fifth highest scorer on the list, Vidar Örn Kjartansson. In 2015, the Icelander scored a total of 25 goals. Pellegrino has six rounds left to score as many or more.

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