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Tromso are flying in Norwegian football at present, being the major surprise in “Eliteserien”. Up there far north in Norway, you have the dark period coming soon as the club could be playing Marescaball under Northern Lights.
Leicester are early on with their new style of play, but at Tromso they have shone all season long as they have taken remarkable steps out of the shadows and relegation zones they used to fight in.
Their coach Gaute Helstrup (47) is one from the grassroots, being most of his coaching career at neighbour club Tromsdalen. He had experience from playing in the top flight with Tromso, being a midfielder as he also had spells at Haugesund.
Playing out from the back is a vital part of their game with former Stoke City goalkeeper Jacob Haugaard (31) being a key to it all. The big Dane moved up north last season, coming in on loan from AIK, making a permanent move later on. A fun fact is that Haugaard played in Premier League with The Potters, being beaten by Kelechi Iheanacho as he scored for Man City at The Etihad.
So if you are out to search for something close to perfect, playing with a three men backline, five midfielders and two forwards, then a trip to Tromso is worth the money. They are on a winning strike with recent victories vs. Bodo Glimt and Rosenborg.
The Marescaball project is close to being perfectly established under Northern Lights, as Tromso looks to have taken heavy steps with shrewd signings, bringing in players perfect for their approach. One of them is high flying talented striker Jakob Napoleon Romsaas, moving north from Oslo and local club Skeid. The 19 year old has got his full breakthrough this season, scoring sensational goals up front for the North Norwegians.
Former Leicester men Lars Hirschfeld and Gary Ford are also players with a life at Tromso. Hirschfeld played at Romssa Arena, the home stadium, previously known as Alfheim, in 2005. He moved on after just 11 games, being tracked by Rosenborg, having a successfull time in Trondheim from 2006 to 2007. Gary Ford had a spell at TIL in 1993, later moving to Harstad, being in Norwegian football until 1995, returning to play for Hartlepool United.
Exploring TIL and the way they play is an interesting watch, as it looks better and more in line with a unique style and has taken it further into midfield as you can see interesting patterns and play upsetting most opponents as they move central midfielders wide and really confuse everyone they are playing against.
Norwegian football is in transition and the Tromso style is a step above what we have seen so far from Leicester in making extreme changes as you move players in and out of position, to try to score goals. So far this have worked wonders for Tromso on their route to Europe. They are on almost no budget, making the impossible possible.
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