Ståle Solbakken
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Ståle Solbakken (born 27 February 1968) is a Norwegian professional
football manager ''Football Manager'', also known as ''Worldwide Soccer Manager'' in North America from 2004 to 2008, is a series of football management simulation video games developed by British developer Sports Interactive and published by Sega. The game beg ...
and former
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who is the head coach of the Norway national team. During his playing career, Solbakken was named 1995 Norwegian midfielder of the year, and he won the
Danish Superliga The Danish Superliga (, ) is a professional association football league in Denmark and the highest level of the Danish football league system. The league is currently contested by 12 teams each year, with 2 teams relegated. It is the current ...
championship with both
Aalborg Aalborg or Ålborg ( , , ) is Denmark's List of cities and towns in Denmark, fourth largest urban settlement (behind Copenhagen, Aarhus, and Odense) with a population of 119,862 (1 July 2022) in the town proper and an Urban area, urban populati ...
and
Copenhagen Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...
(in 1999 and 2001 respectively). He played 58 matches and scored nine goals for the
Norway national football team The Norway national football team (, or informally ''Landslaget'') represents Norway in men's international Association football, football, and is controlled by the Norwegian Football Federation, the governing body for football in Norway. Norwa ...
during the end of the 1990s, and represented
Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...
at the 1998 World Cup and 2000 European Championship tournaments. He ended his playing career in March 2001 following a
heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when Ischemia, blood flow decreases or stops in one of the coronary arteries of the heart, causing infarction (tissue death) to the heart muscle. The most common symptom ...
. As a manager, he was named 2004 Norwegian Manager of the Year, and won eight Superliga championships with Copenhagen. Solbakken was also in charge of German club
1. FC Köln 1. Fußball-Club Köln 01/07 e. V., better known as simply 1. FC Köln () or FC Cologne in English language, English, is a German professional association football, football club based in Cologne in North Rhine-Westphalia. It was formed in 1948 ...
during the
2011–12 Bundesliga The 2011–12 Bundesliga was the 49th season of the Bundesliga, Germany's premier football league. The season started on 5 August 2011 with the opening match involving defending champions Borussia Dortmund and ended with the last games on 5 May ...
season and then managed English side
Wolverhampton Wanderers Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club ( ), commonly referred to as Wolves, is a professional association football, football club based in Wolverhampton, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league s ...
in a six-month tenure. Following his second period at Copenhagen, he was appointed coach of the Norwegian national team in 2020.


Club career


Early clubs

Solbakken, a midfielder, started his career in Norway, playing for his local lower league team Grue. After five seasons with Grue he moved to HamKam, a then- second tier club, in 1989. He was the club's top goalscorer in the 1990 season, where he netted nine times. The following season he scored 14 goals to help the club to
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to the top-flight Norwegian Premier League. After narrowly avoiding relegation in his first season at the top level, Solbakken was part of the HamKam side that finished fifth in 1993 - a position they have not bettered since.


Lillestrøm

In 1994, he transferred to their Premier League rivals
Lillestrøm Lillestrøm is a municipality in Akershus county. It is located in the traditional district of Romerike. With a population of 85,757 inhabitants, it is the fourth most populated municipality in Viken. It was founded on 1 January 2020 as a merger ...
where he finished as runner-up in the league during his first season. Although the club finished in fourth during the following campaign, Solbakken's performances saw him win the Kniksen award as the Norwegian Midfielder of the Season. He was appointed club captain by Lillestrøm and helped the side again finish runners-up in 1996 before he serving one final season in 1997 for ''the Canaries''. In total, he made 99 league appearances for the club, scoring 34 times.


Moves abroad

In October 1997, Solbakken joined
English Premier League The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football Lea ...
club
Wimbledon Wimbledon most often refers to: * Wimbledon, London, a district of southwest London * Wimbledon Championships, the oldest tennis tournament in the world and one of the four Grand Slam championships Wimbledon may also refer to: Places London * W ...
for £250,000. In his six league games for Wimbledon, Solbakken scored one goal against
West Ham United West Ham United Football Club is a professional Association football, football club based in Stratford, London, Stratford, East London, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league system, English f ...
, and was twice named "
man of the match In team sport, a player of the match award (also known as man of the match or woman of the match) is often given to the most outstanding player in a particular match. This can be a player from either team, although the player is generally chose ...
", but he fell out with team manager
Joe Kinnear Joseph Patrick Kinnear (27 December 1946 – 7 April 2024) was an Irish professional football manager and player. As a defender, Kinnear spent the majority of his career spanning ten seasons with Tottenham Hotspur and one with Brighton & H ...
and was banned from club training shortly thereafter. He was quickly sold to Danish side
Aalborg Aalborg or Ålborg ( , , ) is Denmark's List of cities and towns in Denmark, fourth largest urban settlement (behind Copenhagen, Aarhus, and Odense) with a population of 119,862 (1 July 2022) in the town proper and an Urban area, urban populati ...
in March 1998. Solbakken became Aalborg's captain, and guided the club to the
1998–99 Danish Superliga The 1998–99 Danish Superliga season was the 9th season of the Danish Superliga league championship, governed by the Danish Football Association. It took place from the first match on July 26, 1998, to final match on June 16, 1999. The Danish c ...
championship, as well as the final of the 1998–99 Danish Cup tournament. He won Danish football's Player of the Year Award in 2000. In total, he played 79 games and scored 13 goals for AaB in the Danish Superliga. In August 2000, he departed to Danish league rivals
Copenhagen Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...
. Solbakken quickly became a regular player in the side and helped push them to the top of the table but he was unable to complete the season after suffering a
heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when Ischemia, blood flow decreases or stops in one of the coronary arteries of the heart, causing infarction (tissue death) to the heart muscle. The most common symptom ...
in March 2001. The club went on to win the 2001 Superliga championship and give Solbakken a second championship medal as a player.


Health problems

During training on 13 March 2001, Solbakken had a
heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when Ischemia, blood flow decreases or stops in one of the coronary arteries of the heart, causing infarction (tissue death) to the heart muscle. The most common symptom ...
. He was rapidly attended to by the club doctor, Frank Odgaard, who found that Solbakken's heart had stopped beating. Odgaard asked a player to call an ambulance and to tell them it was critical, while he continued to administer cardiac massage. Upon the ambulance's arrival, Solbakken was pronounced clinically dead at the scene.Marcus Christenson
Why football is not a matter of life and death for Solbakken
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...
, 1 November 2006.
On the way to the hospital in the ambulance, he was revived nearly seven minutes later. He survived the episode and now has a
pacemaker A pacemaker, also known as an artificial cardiac pacemaker, is an implanted medical device that generates electrical pulses delivered by electrodes to one or more of the chambers of the heart. Each pulse causes the targeted chamber(s) to co ...
fitted. The heart attack was the result of a previously undetected heart defect. Shortly after, on medical advice, he announced his retirement from playing.


International career

Solbakken made his international debut for the
Norway national football team The Norway national football team (, or informally ''Landslaget'') represents Norway in men's international Association football, football, and is controlled by the Norwegian Football Federation, the governing body for football in Norway. Norwa ...
on 9 March 1994, in a 3–1 friendly win in
Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...
. Although he was not named in the squad for the 1994 World Cup, he became a regular feature in the squad soon after. He was a member of the Norwegian team that qualified for 1998 World Cup, where he appeared in two of their group games (against
Morocco Morocco, officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It has coastlines on the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to Algeria–Morocc ...
and
Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...
) as well as their second round exit to
Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...
. His country qualified for the next major tournament, the 2000 European Championship, but Solbakken picked up an injury shortly before the finals. In the end, he was only able to appear in one tournament game: a goalless draw with
Slovenia Slovenia, officially the Republic of Slovenia, is a country in Central Europe. It borders Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the south and southeast, and a short (46.6 km) coastline within the Adriati ...
that eliminated them in the group stage. After this exit, he announced his international retirement, aged 32. In total, he won 58 caps for Norway, scoring nine times.


International goals

:''Scores and goals list Norway's goal tally first''


Managerial career


Ham-Kam

In 2002, Solbakken returned to Norway and started his managerial career at his old club HamKam, positioned at the second tier. He had great success at HamKam, as the club won the league and was promoted to the top-flight Tippeligaen. His "resurrection", and the "salvation" (i.e. promotion) of HamKam, earned him the nickname "Ståle Salvatore", often cited in Norwegian press since. The next season, Solbakken managed HamKam to a fifth place in the Tippeligaen 2004 season, and he won the 2004 Kniksen award as Norwegian Manager of the Year. In late 2005, Solbakken was named as new manager of another of his former clubs,
Copenhagen Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...
.


Copenhagen

In his first years at the club, Solbakken guided Copenhagen to the
2006 2006 was designated as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification. Events January * January 1– 4 – Russia temporarily cuts shipment of natural gas to Ukraine during a price dispute. * January 12 – A stampede during t ...
and
2007 2007 was designated as the International Heliophysical Year and the International Polar Year. Events January * January 1 **Bulgaria and Romania 2007 enlargement of the European Union, join the European Union, while Slovenia joins the Eur ...
Danish Superliga The Danish Superliga (, ) is a professional association football league in Denmark and the highest level of the Danish football league system. The league is currently contested by 12 teams each year, with 2 teams relegated. It is the current ...
championship, as well as the
2006 2006 was designated as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification. Events January * January 1– 4 – Russia temporarily cuts shipment of natural gas to Ukraine during a price dispute. * January 12 – A stampede during t ...
Royal League The Royal League was an annual Scandinavian football tournament held three times in the 2000s between teams from the three Scandinavian monarchies (Denmark, Sweden, and Norway), starting after the end of the regular domestic seasons of Norway and ...
trophy. He managed Copenhagen through to the group stage of the
2006–07 UEFA Champions League The 2006–07 UEFA Champions League was the 15th season of UEFA's premier European club football tournament, the UEFA Champions League, since it was rebranded from the European Cup, and the 52nd season overall. The final was contested by Milan ...
, after beating
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in the final qualifying round on 23 August 2006. Copenhagen finished last in its group, though they won a meriting 1–0 victory against later semi-finalists
Manchester United Manchester United Football Club, commonly referred to as Man United (often stylised as Man Utd) or simply United, is a professional association football, football club based in Old Trafford (area), Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, Engl ...
. In May 2009, Solbakken led Copenhagen to the Double of both the 2009 Danish Cup and the 2009 Superliga championship, the seventh championship in club history. On 3 November 2009, it was announced that he would not renew his contract which ended on 30 June 2011. Instead, he agreed a
letter of intent A letter of intent (LOI or LoI, or Letter of Intent) is a document outlining the understanding between two or more parties which they intend to formalize in a legally binding agreement. The concept is similar to a heads of agreement, term she ...
to become Norway national team manager either in January 2012 or after the
Euro 2012 The 2012 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2012 or simply Euro 2012, was the 14th European Championship for men's national football teams organised by UEFA. The final tournament, held between 8 June and 1 ...
, should Norway qualify. However, this agreement was ultimately not to come to fruition.


1. FC Köln

On 15 May 2011, it was announced that Solbakken would take over as manager of
1. FC Köln 1. Fußball-Club Köln 01/07 e. V., better known as simply 1. FC Köln () or FC Cologne in English language, English, is a German professional association football, football club based in Cologne in North Rhine-Westphalia. It was formed in 1948 ...
of the German
Bundesliga The Bundesliga (; ), sometimes referred to as the Fußball-Bundesliga () or 1. Bundesliga (), is a professional association football league in Germany and the highest level of the German football league system. The Bundesliga comprises 18 teams ...
from
sporting director A sporting director, or director of sport, is an executive management position in a sports club. The role is well known as a manager role for European football clubs, which are sometime also "sports clubs", offering many types of sports. The ...
Volker Finke, who acted as interim manager after Frank Schaefer quit during the season. Solbakken had been due to take the Norway national team job in January 2012, but Köln bought out his contract for a reported €400,000. He won his first game in charge, a DFB Cup tie at SC Wiedenbrück, but took four league games to register his first victory. By the winter break Köln sat in tenth place, but their form plummeted in the second half of the campaign and they dropped into a relegation battle. This decline in form was coupled with several negative incidents involving their squad misbehaving off the field. Solbakken later quipped that "
Jesus Jesus (AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Chris ...
and
José Mourinho José Mário dos Santos Mourinho Félix (; born 26 January 1963) is a Portuguese professional Association football, football Manager (association football), manager and former player, who is currently the head coach of Süper Lig club Fenerba ...
would have struggled together at that club this year". Solbakken was dismissed by Köln on 12 April 2012 following a 0–4 loss at
Mainz Mainz (; #Names and etymology, see below) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate, and with around 223,000 inhabitants, it is List of cities in Germany by population, Germany's 35th-largest city. It lies in ...
, with the team sat in 16th place. He was replaced by former coach Frank Schaefer, who oversaw the final four games of the season, during which the club dropped to 17th place and were therefore relegated.


Wolverhampton Wanderers

On 11 May 2012, English club
Wolverhampton Wanderers Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club ( ), commonly referred to as Wolves, is a professional association football, football club based in Wolverhampton, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league s ...
announced that Solbakken was to become their new manager. He officially took over from acting manager Terry Connor on 1 July 2012. Solbakken began his Wolves tenure with the club in the
Football League Championship The English Football League Championship, known simply as the Championship and for sponsorship purposes as Sky Betting & Gaming, Sky Bet Championship, is a professional association football league in England and Wales. Contested by 24 clubs, i ...
having been relegated from the
English Premier League The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football Lea ...
at the end of the 2011–12 season. His first competitive game in charge was a League Cup tie against
Aldershot Town Aldershot Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Aldershot, Hampshire, England. The team competes in the National League, the fifth level of the English football league system. The club was founded in the spr ...
, which his side won on penalties. Solbakken failed to stop the club's slump that had brought relegation and despite at one time lifting the club to third place, they had slumped as low as 18th by the turn of the year. He was sacked on 5 January 2013, following an
FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual Single-elimination tournament, knockout association football, football competition in domestic Football in England, English football. First played during ...
elimination by at that time non-league
Luton Town Luton Town Football Club is a professional association football, football club from Luton, Bedfordshire, England. The club currently competes in EFL League One, the third level of the English football league system. Nicknamed "The Hatters", L ...
, which was his fourth consecutive defeat.


Return to Copenhagen

On 21 August 2013, Solbakken returned as head coach of
Copenhagen Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...
, two years after his departure. Solbakken had a seven-year reign at Copenhagen in which he won three championships in 2016, 2017 and 2019. However, due to a bad start to the 2020–21 Danish Superliga, poor domestic results during 2020 and a failure to qualify for the
2020–21 UEFA Europa League The 2020–21 UEFA Europa League was the 50th season of Europe's secondary club football tournament organised by UEFA, and the 12th season since it was renamed from the UEFA Cup to the UEFA Europa League. Villarreal defeated Manchester United i ...
group stage, Solbakken was fired as manager on 10 October 2020. For his two tenures at Copenhagen, Solbakken was awarded the title as the 'Biggest Manager in Superliga History' by a jury of 38 experts on the Danish Superliga including former Danish national coach
Morten Olsen Morten Per Olsen (; born 14 August 1949) is a Danish former Association football, football manager and former player. He was the head coach of the Denmark national football team, Denmark national team for 15 years from 2000 until 2015, guiding ...
and former football player Rasmus Würtz, who is accredited with most Superliga games played to date with 452 caps.


Norway national team

On 3 December 2020, Solbakken became the Norway international manager on a four-year deal, after the resignation of Lars Lagerbäck. In his first match the following 24 March, the side won 3–0 away to
Gibraltar Gibraltar ( , ) is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory and British overseas cities, city located at the southern tip of the Iberian Peninsula, on the Bay of Gibraltar, near the exit of the Mediterranean Sea into the A ...
in
2022 FIFA World Cup The 2022 FIFA World Cup was the 22nd FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for national football teams organized by FIFA. It took place in Qatar from 20 November to 18 December 2022, after the country was awarded the hosting ri ...
qualification. Norway failed to qualify, and Solbakken criticised the decision to host the tournament in Qatar due to human rights issues and the manner of the vote; the
Norwegian Football Federation The Norwegian Football Federation (, ; NFF) is the governing body of football (soccer), football in Norway. It was formed in 1902 and organises the Norway national football team, men's and Norway women's national football team, women's national te ...
sent only one representative, an analyst to monitor the team's next opponents,
Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
.


Managerial statistics


Honours


Player

AaB *
Danish Superliga The Danish Superliga (, ) is a professional association football league in Denmark and the highest level of the Danish football league system. The league is currently contested by 12 teams each year, with 2 teams relegated. It is the current ...
: 1998–99 Copenhagen *Danish Superliga: 2000–01


Manager

Copenhagen *
Royal League The Royal League was an annual Scandinavian football tournament held three times in the 2000s between teams from the three Scandinavian monarchies (Denmark, Sweden, and Norway), starting after the end of the regular domestic seasons of Norway and ...
: 2005–06 *
Danish Superliga The Danish Superliga (, ) is a professional association football league in Denmark and the highest level of the Danish football league system. The league is currently contested by 12 teams each year, with 2 teams relegated. It is the current ...
: 2005–06, 2006–07, 2008–09, 2009–10,
2010–11 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number, numeral, and glyph. It is the first and smallest positive integer of the infinite sequence of natural numbers. This fundamental property has led to its unique uses in other fields, ranging from science to sp ...
, 2015–16, 2016–17, 2018–19 *
Danish Cup The Danish Cup (; often referred to as Pokalen) is the official "single-elimination tournament, knockout" cup competition in Danish football, run by the Danish Football Association. The cup has been contested annually since 1955. The winner will ...
: 2008–09, 2014–15, 2015–16, 2016–17


Individual

* 1995 Kniksen award as Norwegian Midfielder of the Year * 2004 Kniksen award as Norwegian Manager of the Year *
Danish Superliga The Danish Superliga (, ) is a professional association football league in Denmark and the highest level of the Danish football league system. The league is currently contested by 12 teams each year, with 2 teams relegated. It is the current ...
Manager of the Year:
2007 2007 was designated as the International Heliophysical Year and the International Polar Year. Events January * January 1 **Bulgaria and Romania 2007 enlargement of the European Union, join the European Union, while Slovenia joins the Eur ...
,
2011 The year marked the start of a Arab Spring, series of protests and revolutions throughout the Arab world advocating for democracy, reform, and economic recovery, later leading to the depositions of world leaders in Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen ...


References


External links


FC København profile

FC København player statistics

AaB profile

Ham-Kam profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Solbakken, Staale 1968 births Living people Sportspeople from Kongsvinger Footballers from Innlandet Norwegian men's footballers Men's association football midfielders Hamarkameratene players Lillestrøm SK players Wimbledon F.C. players AaB Fodbold players F.C. Copenhagen players Eliteserien players Premier League players Danish Superliga players Kniksen Award winners Norway men's international footballers 1998 FIFA World Cup players UEFA Euro 2000 players Norwegian football managers Hamarkameratene managers F.C. Copenhagen managers 1. FC Köln managers Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C. managers Norway national football team managers Eliteserien managers Danish Superliga managers Bundesliga managers English Football League managers Norwegian expatriate men's footballers Expatriate men's footballers in England Expatriate men's footballers in Denmark Norwegian expatriate football managers Expatriate football managers in Denmark Expatriate football managers in Germany Expatriate football managers in England Norwegian expatriate sportspeople in Denmark Norwegian expatriate sportspeople in Germany Norwegian expatriate sportspeople in England 20th-century Norwegian sportsmen