Our prediction for this match:
Norway play host to Czech Republic at their Ulleval Stadion in an eagerly-awaited international friendly. The Norwegians missed out on a place at the EURO 2024 finals and, no doubt, Stale Solbakken’s troops will use upcoming warm-up games as a good preparation for the UEFA Nations League opener against Kazakhstan. As always, all eyes will be on Man City striker Erling Haaland and midfielder Martin Odegaard, speaking of the home team.
The Czechs, on the other hand, did well to qualify for the showpiece tournament in Germany, but seeing that boss Ivan Hasek is likely to mix the squad in Friday’s clash, we are tempted to place our bets on the Norwegians. As for the visitors, Bayer Leverkusen striker Patrik Schick is back from injury, while West Ham defender Vladimir Coufal returns to the squad after he was rested in a 3-0 win over Moldova.
Highlighted Player (Patrik Schick):
Patrick Schick is a Czech Republic international who plays for Sampdoria as a striker. Schick was born in Prague on January 24, 1996 and he started his career at the youth team of his home-town club Sparta Prague. The 187-cm-tall attacker, played only four games for the capital club before moving to Bohemians 1905 on loan in 2015.
After ending his loan spell with the Klokani, Patrick Schick moved to Italy, signing a deal with Serie A side Sampdoria for a fee of €4 million. The Czech footballer has been playing for La Samp ever since and you should know that he scored 11 goals in 32 appearances for the club in the 2016/2017 Serie A campaign.
The talented striker, who is very good in the air, scored on his debut for Czech Republic in a 6-0 win over Malta in May 2016. Patrick Schick’s preferred foot is left and his contract with Sampdoria should expire on June 30, 2020.
Highlighted Team (Norway):
Norway are a Nordic side that participated three times at the FIFA World Cup finals (1938, 1994 and 1998). The Norwegians were producing fine performances at the 1998 FIFA World Cup in France, with the team setting up a meeting with Italy in the last 16 of the showpiece tournament thanks to a 2-1 win over Brazil in their last group match.
However, the Azzurri proved to be a big catch for Norway and thanks to Bobo Vieri’s goal the Italians made it to the quarter-finals. Norway only once qualified for the European Championship finals, with the team suffering elimination in the group stages of the 2000 tournament in Belgium and Netherlands. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is the most famous Norwegian player and it is well known that he helped Manchester United beat Bayern Munich in the 1999 Champions League final.
The “Baby-faced” striker scored the winner for the Red Devils in the dying seconds of the match. Norway play their home games at Ullevaal Stadion, which was opened in September, 1926. The capacity of the venue is 28.000.