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2023/24 Superliga Season Preview w/ Kasper Pedersbæk
625 Plays1 year ago
Joined by xG king Kasper Pedersbæk, we take a detailed look at all 12 Superliga teams looking at the comings and goings in the transfer market and what we can reasonably expect from each side heading into the 2023/24 season.
Come check out the website at footballindenmark.com & please consider supporting all the Danish football content by becoming at Patreon over at patreon.com/footballindenmark
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Transcript
Podcast Season Preview
00:00:08
Speaker
This is Danish Dynamite, the Super League podcast, brought to you by footballingdenmark.com. Welcome to Danish Dynamite, the Super League podcast. We're back for another season and with only a day to go until the start of the new season, where better to start than with a juicy season preview? Before I introduce today's guest, I just wanted to say thank you to everyone who listened last season and of course, special thanks to anyone who became a Patreon over at patreon.com forward slash football in Denmark.
00:00:38
Speaker
This season is going to be a little bit different owing to various work and family commitments. The show is going to be a little bit less regular coming to you on a monthly basis rather than a weekly basis.
New Monthly Release Schedule
00:00:48
Speaker
But with that, hopefully comes the opportunity to delve a bit deeper into the stories and the action. So without further ado, let's get into previewing the 2023-24 Super League of Season and who better to do it with than the King of XG, Brumby fan Kasper Pedersback. Welcome to the show, Kasper. Great to have you back.
00:01:07
Speaker
Thank you and thank you also for the great imagination of my name, last name. You managed to put it out that well. I do my best. Today's show was supposed to involve Casper de Linde as well, but technical issues have got in the way of his appearance. So you're going to get me and Casper P today and we're going to break down the comings and goings over the summer and what we expect from each of the 12 teams in the super leaguer. I thought we'd go through it.
00:01:35
Speaker
by order of how the teams finished last season.
FC Copenhagen's Summer Changes
00:01:39
Speaker
So let's start with the champions, FC Copenhagen. And I think what's most notable to me over the summer is the number of outgoings that have happened. You know, Hakon Haraldsson went for 17 million euros. Outstanding fee they managed to get from from Lille. But then Mohammed Darami finished alone. Zekka moved back to Greece. Marco Staminich left. Kalle Jonsson left.
00:02:02
Speaker
And the only player that's come in so far, believe, is Theo Sander, who arrived today for 1 million as a sort of backup goalkeeper. But it leaves FC Copenhagen with quite a lot of business to do. And the season is coming up in a day's time. How do you see FC Copenhagen fairing, particularly in these kind of opening few months, Kasper? Well, I assume that in mind that the quality of the squad is still, you know, deep. They have gotten rid of some of the
00:02:30
Speaker
Well, expected outgoings and also made this really impressive transfer for Hals and Trudil. I assume they will be stable, but also, you know, with a little, maybe a little more, what to say, inconsistency in the performances during the early games due to the European commitments.
00:02:51
Speaker
Yeah, and they're obviously the only team from the Super League this season going for a place in the Champions League, one that they made last season. They had a very tricky final playoff game against Trabzon Spohren and ended up triumphing, but it's going to be very tough for them. I think a player who could turn fortunes for them is Cornelius, who obviously missed most of last season with injury. Do you think he can stay fit this season and do you see him recapturing some of his previous form?
00:03:19
Speaker
If I knew that, I would also play the lottery on a Saturday because it can be either one or the other, especially with him. But no doubt that if he's ready to play, he will be a force in the Super League if he returns to the level he performed at earlier.
00:03:38
Speaker
Yeah, absolutely. And quite how the FC Copenhagen attack is going to take shape, I'm not sure. I have a feeling that there's going to be another attacker coming in. There's been rumours of a bid for Elia Sashuri, a V-Borg.
00:03:51
Speaker
And obviously with Cornelius coming back, maybe Rooney Bardagie playing a bit more, I think that we're not going to necessarily know how that attack takes shape yet. But an area of the pitch that they do look perhaps a bit short in is central midfield. Obviously, Rasmus Falk is not getting any younger. But Staminic departed, Zekka departed.
00:04:12
Speaker
You know, there's constant rumors about Thomas Delaney. You know, that's not one that I'm expecting this summer, but they do look a bit short in that area of the park. Is that the area that you would be thinking that they're going to really look to reinforce in the transfer market? Yeah, I would be very surprised if within the next, let's say seven days ish, the end of next week, if they haven't got a transfer in for that position, because yeah, they do look a little bit thin.
00:04:39
Speaker
with only like a fair clip and Leah as the more experienced guys. And then this young guy, Hopo as the young upcoming guy. The other thing about FC Copenhagen last season is they conceded far more goals than they did the season before. I think it was 35 goals they let in last season, which, you know, they won the league in the end, but by four points. And that didn't look a disgraceful tally in terms of goals against, but the season before I think they conceded.
00:05:09
Speaker
you know, a fraction of that number. Koshlava seems to have quite a long-term injury. And so a lot hinges on finding balance in that defense as well. Do you see that being an area of concern for the season coming up? No, not at the current time. They still have Mauro, they have Kevin Dix who can, so the last season showed us, vacate the space in the central defense. They have Van der Maluen,
00:05:39
Speaker
Yeah, Coach Lava out with the injury, but they still have Boylison properly coming back from the injury. So I think they are pretty well stuffed right now at the central defence. If you look, you know, like six months ahead. Yeah, Boylison's a guy I'd almost forgotten about. I heard his name mentioned a week or so ago, and it reminded me, I haven't seen him play in a long time. Talk to me a little bit about Deo Sander as well. That was a transfer that
00:06:09
Speaker
I saw he was rumored to be going to Inter and a number of big clubs abroad and it turns out he's moved within the Superleaguer. I think there's no expectation that he's going to be a starter in the immediate term. But do you see him coming in when Grabara is sold or do you think that it's going to be a longer time before we see him as the number one at FCCO?
00:06:28
Speaker
It's a long-term transfer. He's going to be the number two choice for the goal for the next couple of seasons. I would be very surprised if Sigel Mehegan would put this young guy in already now. He's 18. He's been playing in what, 14 games for Obe. He was put on the bench for Obe last season.
00:06:51
Speaker
still, you know, talented but not ready and especially not with a club of the size and calibre of FC Copenhagen. And if you had to put your cards on the table, what's your prediction for FC Copenhagen in this coming year? Will they finish as champions and will they make it through to the Champions League group stage?
Challenges for FC Copenhagen and Nordsjælland
00:07:12
Speaker
I'm a little bit doubtful about reaching the Champions League group stage, you know, it's a
00:07:18
Speaker
It's a matter of small markets in the single games, in the qualification games. But in the season, in the long term, I am still expecting them in the Danish league to be up there in the top. I'd say instead of putting them on one spot, I'd say in the range of one or two in the league.
00:07:44
Speaker
Got it. Yeah, for me, they are next season's champions again. And I think it would be the first time in quite a while that a team has won three championships in a row. But I just can't see any other team getting close to them in terms of depth. I think when you put everyone's strongest first 11 out, the gap isn't as wide as it has been in previous years, perhaps. But I just think the depth, you know, some of the players you mentioned as well.
00:08:06
Speaker
guys like Boyless and Kevin Dix, you know, these aren't necessarily starting players at the moment, and yet they've got really exceptional quality. So yeah, for me, they're still going to be top, but I agree with you. The Champions League is
00:08:19
Speaker
it all comes down to who you get in that final playoff round, because there's some pretty serious teams there. Looking into last season's second place, FC Norjland, and this feels like a team that is kind of in transition, I think. You know, last season, obviously they lost Andreas Sheldrup, had a managerial change halfway through the season, and this summer, Mads Biddstrup has gone, Kristiansson has gone, and in have come a couple of interesting players in Marcus Ingvitson, who
00:08:48
Speaker
That's a signing that has just really surprised me. You know, a guy who scored 10 goals in the Bundesliga last season, 27 years of age. That's not the kind of profile you normally see coming to a, a super-league team. And also, Jepi Zverskov from, from OB, that was a signing a bit out of the blue. They obviously had quite a poor finish to last season, really tailed off in that, in that championship round.
00:09:12
Speaker
How do you see Nordsland faring this season and do you think those names coming in balance the players who've left? Well, what Nordsland has done this offseason is they have been adding experience to a young squad. They put in Ingwatson coming home from Germany being 27 years old, just hit 10 goals in the Bundesliga last season.
00:09:40
Speaker
They've put in Yebet Sverzko, the recent club captain for Old Bay. He's been playing regular for them for the past couple of seasons. And yeah, so basically they put in a routine on this young squad, adding to a group of experienced players like, you know, Kian Hansen, Yegmaksson,
00:10:03
Speaker
then they needed, you know, some older guys and they've got that in those two guys reaching the squad. So now, you know, basically they now have like, if you say Kian Hansen in defence, they have Tversko in midfield and Ingvassen up front, as you know, the experienced guys then added on with these young second guys in, yeah, around them. Agreed. Yeah. And I think what was so remarkable about what FC Nordsland did last season was
00:10:29
Speaker
They went through the whole season without really a top class number nine. You know, their goals were coming from Scheldrup, from Nuama, guys playing out wide. And I think this season to have a proper number nine is potentially going to be a game changer for them. Yeah. And you have to keep one thing in mind about Northland. They have for several seasons been good at offering the best working opportunities to the number nines at their teams, different teams, you know, during the years.
00:10:59
Speaker
If you look at it, they are a solid group of players creating HG. So basically, if you're the number nine at Northland, if you know the routines, if you know the schemes they play with, you can get
00:11:20
Speaker
to a lot of XG during the season. And if you are a decent finisher, you can convert the XG to goals. So I assume that Ingvassen will hit a solid average of XG per 90. And I also assume that he will convert them as well. Because in Northland, it's a good team creating and setting up chances. And now they have a guy to convert them.
00:11:48
Speaker
I wonder if they use that as part of the argument to persuade him to come, that they're a team that do create so much for that position. Yeah, but you can see Ingmarsson, he, I think, just from the top of my mind, that he has never generated an average so high per 90 for the HG, as he did in the north net back when he was a top scorer in the league, like, you know, what, five years, six years ago or something like that.
00:12:16
Speaker
So I think it's a good transfer. I think Northland has done a solid piece of business, adding those pieces to the squad. And also, you know, like they have tried to replace what they lose. And in that mind, you know, and also in mind that, you know, Maspisto, he has been sold to Red Bull Club for like 70 millions. It also shows you that, you know, it's a kind of quality that you can replace one, you know, one to one.
00:12:45
Speaker
So you have to do it in another way. And I think that Northland has done solid business, but also it can't be shaky. It's still a young group of players. So I'm curious to see how good a start at the season they get. Are they down at the end of last season? Or can they start from a fresh and be riding a high? Yeah.
00:13:13
Speaker
I think balancing European fixtures is going to be a challenge for this squad. And I think ultimately that's going to that's going to decide where they finish because they can't afford too much rotation.
AGF's Strategic Signings and Viborg's Patience
00:13:24
Speaker
They have got some options like Zidane Sertimir, for example, who arrived in January. There was some problem with his registration so he couldn't play, but he looks fit and raring to play. And he's going to be an important addition to their squad, I think. But playing in the conference league, you do play
00:13:40
Speaker
a number of, I think it's four qualifying games before you even get to the group stages. So they do have a lot of football ahead of them. And yeah, I've got them finishing third next season. I think that they've got a really strong squad still, but I think that that needs to rotate. And as soon as you have to rotate Ingvatson, for example, who is there to come in? You know, I don't think Nygren is anywhere near the same level, for example.
00:14:07
Speaker
No, and not pure number nine as well. I think in the spots around the third or fourth, maybe, it can be Northland. But Northland, it's a funny size of glove because if they get things going, they can have this good run.
00:14:30
Speaker
And, you know, right. As I said before, right. A high. Um, but I think I don't see them as the number one, uh, challenger for the, for the, for the league title, uh, to if you go make. Got it. Yeah. I'm of a similar opinion. A lot of it hinges on, as you said, uh, Ingvatsen and whether he can hit the ground running and recapture that, that previous, keep in mind that they still got, well, at least at this time when we're recording,
00:15:00
Speaker
They still got Nwama and they have replaced the midfielders. They lost Tversko and Zetimir, who didn't play in the spring because of registration issues. They have kind of replaced Järko Kresdensen and Mespiesztof leaving the club. So they have done good business and also added a number nine. I think it looks interesting for Northland.
00:15:26
Speaker
Great. In third place last season was AGF and it really felt like there was some upward trajectory from them since winter. What are you expecting from AGF this season? I think AGF has done on paper a really good piece of business, adding players to the squad, leaving out secondary pieces. If you look at the players that have left the club,
00:15:54
Speaker
And none of the players who has that were like, you know, first-team players, regular players. They have, obviously, they have sold Bizek, you know, to a large amount of money. But instead, they have added good pieces. They've added to be a speck. He played in Bipo earlier, was in a German football. They have got Felix Beimo on a contract. They got him on loan last season. They brought in Jani Saasira,
00:16:23
Speaker
a German center forward, who has a lot of similarities with Patrick Modenson. He's also this big guy, a target player. So I think they have added a lot of pieces to the squad, complementary pieces, fitting in with the squad, fitting in with the tactics. And only losing Bizek, who obviously was a really good player, otherwise he wouldn't be sold to Enza.
00:16:53
Speaker
but also a player which isolated to him alone wasn't the one sole reason for them doing so well. So I see a give as being in a great spot right now and going into this season where they can look up instead of down in terms of reproducing or doing better than last season.
00:17:23
Speaker
Yeah, agreed. I've got them finishing second next season. And I think that, I think those additions you talked about are definitely exciting. Sarah came from the, he came through at Borussia Dortmund before he went to Bielerfields. And I think that, yeah, definite similarities, like you said, to Mortensen. It seems like AGF of
00:17:45
Speaker
They've really struggled to find a striker to back up Mortensen in recent times. You know, they went through Jorgensen last season, obviously had Haugen, they had Jeliduin and it feels like the latest attempt to try and solve that problem. You also mentioned Jan Bissex transfer to Inter and I was really impressed with the fee they got there. I think it was around seven million euros.
00:18:09
Speaker
I think that transfer is just an indication of the pathway that young players have to big league clubs now from the super leaguer. There's no longer the need to move to Belgium or Holland before you get one of those big moves. Those big teams are now shopping direct. And I think that that is very exciting in terms of the sorts of names that can be attracted in the future. Yeah, I agree. I agree.
00:18:34
Speaker
So yeah, I think ADF are going to have a real struggle getting into Europe this season, just because they've drawn club Brugge in the qualifiers. And I think that even with the best will in the world, that's a very difficult draw for them. I think if they miss out on Europe, it wouldn't necessarily be the worst thing for their league form, that they've got quite a set formation, they've got a first 11 that broadly picks itself. And so yeah, I'm excited to see what they can do. And I think with that season under his belt, Rossler has
00:19:04
Speaker
Definitely steadied the ship got them moving in an upwards trajectory and everything is there for the taking this season Yeah, you can put it this way that at that I give the pathway forward is clear It's not like you know, I'm sitting before the season Wondering. Oh, how are they gonna do it? How are they gonna play? What's the way forward? I'm you know, it's pretty obviously what they want. They have added pieces to this Yeah way of doing things keeping the same coach keeping the
00:19:35
Speaker
most of the key players. So, yeah, they are a good spot. But, you know, in all things can always implode out of nothing. So interesting to see how they key off the season. And this is the last season before they knocked down the stadium, is that right? Yeah, they started rebuilding or building the new stadium.
00:19:56
Speaker
I think, yeah, I think it's next year. Okay. Interesting. So next up is V-Borg and, you know, they finished last season in fourth. I think no one expected them to be up there at the start of the season. They really outperformed expectations, especially losing Christian Sorensen so early.
00:20:13
Speaker
This summer, Clint Leemans, who was quite a big part of what they did last season, he's left to return to the Netherlands. And Paulinho, a striker they brought in in January, who never really got going, he's gone off on loan. And they've replaced him with Anna Sique Amenta from
00:20:28
Speaker
Alborg, a really interesting player, not least because he's absolutely huge. I think he's six foot seven or something like that. And he's looked pretty good in pre-season, banged in a couple of goals in a friendly the other week. And I don't know, I've just got a feeling that he could really be the new J. Roy Grot in V-Borg. Yeah, it's not that I disagree with you. He's an interesting
00:20:55
Speaker
player being added to a team, which has like, what can I say, the non expected expectations to perform. So they will give him time. They don't, they believe him in him because, you know, people is a size of club when they bring in a player. It's not that, you know, other clubs doesn't believe in the players they pick up, but for people, it's, it's more,
00:21:25
Speaker
important that the incomings can fit a spot. They have to have patience with them. I also think that's why Pauline got a whole season with Webull before leaving the club alone. And also, Menter is, as we say, he has some similarities with the J-Body court, so he can be easily put in the squad without too much adapting.
00:21:51
Speaker
And he will also get the time to it because they also have the other group of offensive players who can play from the beginning.
00:22:01
Speaker
put in a Mensa a little by each game introducing him to the squad. Wipo is also, if you look at the transfers in and out, it's very Wipo-ish right now. As just mentioned, Mensa is basically the only one, the only in-going transfer at the moment. They've added a player from the under-19 squad beside him, and then they have sold, well, losing Lemans on a free transfer, and then they loaned out Paulinho,
00:22:32
Speaker
let Meg Landers and his contract run out. Right now, Vivo is waiting. They're waiting if some bigger clubs are coming to pick up some of the players. I'm especially looking at the Louis Lourd and St. Guy, you know, the right back as one of the main pieces. Also, Achewe up front. So I think Vivo, they are waiting because they are not going out buying a lot of players before they have sold what they got. So right now, I'm not surprised.
00:23:02
Speaker
by the lack of activity, but I'm not expecting, in general terms, I'm not expecting people to reproduce the performance from last season out of nothing, out of the current situation. So I say around the top six, but not at the moment, not in the top four. Yeah, yeah, agreed. I think I have them fifth or sixth for the next season. But those three players you mentioned, Lucas Lund, Dantung Gai, Elia Sashiri, I think losing
00:23:32
Speaker
any of those would be difficult to replace. They were so important last season. I think losing more than one of them could be disastrous in terms of what it means for the team. And, you know, V-book have shown in the past that they can recruit very well, but I think those players are fundamental to what they're doing at the moment. So, yeah, it's going to be interesting to see how it plays out. I saw Brumby had a bid for Lucas Lund rejected, but presumably they're going to come back around for him. Yeah.
00:24:01
Speaker
But it depends because people also, some newspaper stories is also about people, you know, demanding maybe too much from, yeah, for the players. Also, maybe in mind that, you know, they know that Bambu at the moment don't have a first team goalkeeper beside the reserves. So also trying to get the upper hand when they know that Bambu are a keeper down.
00:24:26
Speaker
asking for more money that they might, you know, a normal world would get for Lucas Note. Who has? We have to keep that in mind. They only played, you know, one regular good season for Vivo last year. So it's also early to put a huge amount of money for a so young player. That's true.
00:24:45
Speaker
I've just looked back on my predictions. I actually have them in fourth, which I don't think is impossible if they hang on to those players. But I think that that prediction might get revised downwards. For people, they are a very thin team in terms of the depth of the squad. Not many key players are going to be injured before they have a problem.
00:25:08
Speaker
and replacing them at the same level. Last season he played almost all the games, he played a lot of games, actually he played a lot of games, and St. Guy played a lot of games, Bjorki and Salatzel played a lot of games, Lucas Loeb played a lot of games. They also got these small margins with them. And just losing one or two players for a longer, long-term injury,
00:25:37
Speaker
it's showcasing that we've always been a thin squad in terms of the depth. Yeah, absolutely. I mean, this time last year, they were playing the first of six European qualifying games and obviously having lost the qualification playoff at the end of last season to FC Michelin, they're not going to be doing that this this summer. So maybe it will be a bit calmer and a bit less rotation needed.
00:26:01
Speaker
Yeah, interesting nonetheless. The next team based on where they finished last season was Rombi, who finished in fifth.
Brøndby's Key Player Transactions
00:26:10
Speaker
And this is obviously your team. So I'm guessing that you're going to have quite a strong opinion on this. In terms of incomings and outgoings, obviously Maddermanson moving to Leicester, that was a
00:26:22
Speaker
The transfer that was probably expected. I think that there was lots of interest in him. Decent fee. And Anis Slimani also moving to the English Championship. A couple of transfers to England. Do you think they're going to be a success in the championship? I think Hamilton, obviously he will play. I think he's been brought in to Leicester to play. And also I've seen him, obviously a lot.
00:27:00
Speaker
It's a tricky case because he has the size of being a good fit for English football. He has the technique. He's skilled enough to work both ways, both defensively and offensively. He's strong. He has a good size, but can he adapt to the pace of the game at Sheffield United and also in general in England?
00:27:02
Speaker
And I think that he will long term have success.
00:27:29
Speaker
It's not that I'm concerned, but I'm also, I think it's the realistic thing, the future for him will be that he will be slowly adjusted or tried to adjust to the pace of the game. And maybe, I don't know, loaned out short-term. But it's not that I see him as a key player for Sheffield United from the beginning. No, that makes sense. That makes sense. I feel like,
00:27:59
Speaker
He didn't necessarily improve his value last season. I feel like had he been sold the summer before, he might have got a slightly better fee, but I still think those two transfers together represent a decent amount of money for Bwomby to play with in the market. They've obviously moved for Jakob Rasmussen for, I think, around three million euros, which is, again, quite a big signing for a Super League team. He was at Fiorentina on loan at Firenord last season.
00:28:29
Speaker
He's moved back to Denmark and that's quite a significant signing, I would say. A 26-year-old Dane who's played in Serie A, played in the Eredivisie. Are you excited about his addition to the defence? He's a good adding for the squad. A left-footed defender. Also fitting in what turned out to be Jesper Söntzen's choice of playing free in the back. He started out with a regular
00:28:57
Speaker
four-man defense. He switched halfway through the championship playoff and it's also clearly, I'm expecting him to play free in the bag as well. They loaned out, no, brought in, if I win alone, in the winter, left footed defender.
00:29:19
Speaker
And yeah, Rasmussen is basically replacing Feigwind as the left-footed defender. And as soon as Rasmussen is in shape, I also see him as the cornerstone at the left side of the three-man defense. Yeah, without no doubt. Okay.
00:29:37
Speaker
Another guy who came in was Justin Che. Yeah, I don't expect anything from him. He's been brought in due to his American relations. It's not to be unfair of him. I saw him play Monday and yeah, he did make a terrible mistake.
00:30:05
Speaker
basically offering the opponent's goal. But from the look of him playing, it's a long-term investment to put in a not too harsh way. And I don't expect him playing any regular minutes being anything near the starting 11, at least this autumn.
00:30:29
Speaker
When you look at how Brumbi did last season, they conceded 52 goals, which was by far and away the most in the championship group and actually wouldn't have been out of place in the relegation group. So you can see why they've moved to bring in Rasmussen to help support that. Obviously, a goalkeeper is an absolutely fundamental sign. But at the other end of the pitch, I know a player that people are very excited about maybe addressing the goal difference.
00:30:56
Speaker
at the, in the attacking end is Chris Garden. He finished really strong in the championship group games last season. Do you see him taking a further leap next season and becoming, you know, in contention for the golden boot perhaps? I think at least he's going to be the regular starter from the beginning of the season alongside with the Ohi Ojiamo upfront. In terms of him, Chris gone, you know,
00:31:25
Speaker
hitting the goals. I think it would be an unnecessary pressure to put on him, talking about him getting the golden boot, being top scorer in the league and stuff like that. He has to keep building, adding to his game. Yes, he did end the season strongly, hitting what? Six goals in the last couple of months. But he still has things to work on and it would be an unfair
00:31:55
Speaker
pressure to put on him at the state of his career right now. Even though he's a good player, it's not that I'm saying he's not, but at the moment it would be unfair to also to statistically put this pressure on him in terms of if you look at the XG. So, yeah, but I still see him as the starter alongside Umu Jamfo. Yes, he has.
00:32:21
Speaker
got by Simon Hitler as the main striker alongside Mujampa. So yeah, he has moved, but not to a top score level yet, at least not to put the pressure on him. Got it. And one more player who I'm fascinated to see how he does this season is Hakonevjen, who obviously came in in January. And he had a few games that quite impressed me and made me quite excited to watch him next season. Do you think he's going to be
00:32:49
Speaker
a key figure and do you think that his performances are going to again step up a level? A lot is going to be revealed in terms of what kind of style that Jesper Sampson is going to play. It's not that you know a system is all but still if you play a 3-5-2 then you
00:33:14
Speaker
You don't have the same kind of wide forward, wide attacking midfielders going, you know, inside, trying to find these open slots between the lines. That's where Iftjen and, you know, a player like Veliz, what they are best, but at the moment it looks like Jesper Sanderson want to play this 3-5-2,
00:33:38
Speaker
And that's quite a limitation in terms of how many and where the offensive players can persist in themselves. So I think a lot is going to get down to how, what kind of style do Jesper Sampson want to play with his Bromby side? That makes sense. So final question on Bromby, what's your
00:34:02
Speaker
Expectation for the season perhaps, you know, how high can this team get up the table and what's the potential downside? They have a huge potential. I'd say it's one of the best squads. The coach has got for the last couple of years. But it's a squad that also has a hole or two.
00:34:34
Speaker
Obviously, right now, the goalkeeper, it's obviously. But also the lack of a true number six, who can play the ball. Right now, you are being left with Jożi Błodasiewicz, who is a great player against the ball, recovering the ball. But he's a terrible playmaker in the back, a terrible short passer. And then you have Joe Bell, who is a great passer, but a terrible defender, it has shown.
00:35:01
Speaker
And you have to get rid of one big problem is that they have way too many players in the first team squad and way too many players too far away from game time. It's a funny size for me to predict. For me, it can be anything between not that I expect them winning the league, but you know,
00:35:26
Speaker
The potential can be anything from, you know, the top to the pure bottom, but, you know, going down, but to imploding and not getting things to work, uh, finishing, uh, below the top six. So it's a, it's a really, really, um, tough one to predict. I agree. Of, of all the teams, there's probably the most Delta in Brumby, right? Um,
00:35:51
Speaker
And I ended up predicting sixth, and like you say, it wouldn't surprise me at all if that became third. It also wouldn't surprise me if it became seventh or even eighth. I think a lot depends on finding the right players. Yeah, and as I said, for me, looking at the team, a lot has to do with the coach and the style of play, because this spring,
00:36:19
Speaker
We've seen him going from 4-3-3 with possession, keeping the ball in passing lanes to a team that basically went below 35% possession in a couple of games, reaching below 200 successful passes. So it's so tough to predict because what do he want to play and how well can they perform it?
00:36:48
Speaker
So it's, as you say, it can be anything from, we have this saying in Danish, it's a terrible translation, but in Danish you would say it's a bird or is it a fish, basically. Does it live in the water or does it fly? I have no idea whether one is going to swim or fly.
00:37:06
Speaker
We will find out in due course. The final team from last season's top six was Ranas.
Randers' Predicted Regression
00:37:11
Speaker
Just looking at how they're positioned for next season. Lost a couple of key names already in Lassie Berg Jonsson, who's one of several players to move over to Malmo in Sweden, but also Tocin Kehinde, gone off to Ferens Faros, Jakob Ankerson has left for Horsons. I had a look at some of the players coming in and really the only one whose name I'd even heard of was Wessel Dammers, a centre back from
00:37:36
Speaker
from the Netherlands. And they're a team who didn't score many goals last season. Only 40 goals, which was by far the lowest in the championship group, conceded quite a few, 47. And so I think they sort of found themselves in the championship group, but their record says it all. They finished with only 10 wins on the season. Quite a few people are down on their prospects next season. I'm not as down as others, but they don't fill me with masses of confidence, shall we say. How about you?
00:38:05
Speaker
I see them somewhere around 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th spot, maybe. Depends how they can create and convert the chances. It's a team that got a lot of upside last season. If you look at the expected goals difference, we've discussed this earlier. If you have in mind this,
00:38:36
Speaker
this line, the zero line. If you perform below, you lose more games in the longer terms than you win. And if you can keep the expected goals difference on a plus level, you will, depending on how good, how solid a plus it is, you will win more in time than you'll lose. Yeah? Yep. Yeah. Ranas, they performed very closely around zero.
00:39:05
Speaker
But they won, you know, a lot of the games that they, you know, when I'm saying they wasn't supposed to win them, it's not that I'm saying it's unfair, it's not that I'm saying they didn't perform well. But, you know, they just got this chudge of luck that went, you know, that put the games their way instead of losing them. I think that Ranas will, they will experience more losses this season and maybe got a little bit down to, well, I say, Earth.
00:39:35
Speaker
zero line again and that's why I have them like this solid middle team maybe going a little below average in the league but they will some way be around yeah seventh to eighth maybe
00:39:49
Speaker
Yeah, I I've got them eighth. And I think what was what was interesting is last season, as you said, 39 XG scored 40 goals, which is, I guess, why then they're near the zero line. But what was perhaps less encouraging was the fact that, you know, they were ninth out of 12 teams in terms of shots on target per match.
00:40:11
Speaker
They created very few big chances. I think they were 11th out of 12th for that, only 34 big chances created. And so there's big pressure on the strikers to convert when they finally do get chances. I think they've got decent strikers, you know, Steven Ody decent, Marvin Ego decent, but whether that's going to be enough, given what they create to power them to anywhere approaching the championship group, I'm not convinced.
00:40:37
Speaker
Oh, neither am I. I see, at least I see six other teams than Ranas as favorite to reach the top six before. The other statistic that caught my eye was that only one team conceded more XG over the season, which was Odintzer. And so if it wasn't for the heroics of Patrick Kalgren, who finished with, I think it was 11 clean sheets or Ranas had 11 clean sheets anyway, that could have been a lot worse. So.
00:41:05
Speaker
they're not coming in with an exceptional record for next season. And yeah, it's going to be interesting to see how that one pans out.
Midtjylland's Big Summer Signings
00:41:13
Speaker
I think we'll just take a very quick break there before we go into last season's bottom six and see how they'll fare. So go grab a cup of tea or a coffee or a Danish drink of your choice, a Faxi Condi maybe, and we'll take a quick break and we'll be back after this.
00:41:33
Speaker
Welcome back to part two and kicking off in the second part of the season preview, we're going to look at the teams that finished in the relegation group last season, starting with FC Michelin, who find themselves with a place in Europe by virtue of that European playoff and
00:41:50
Speaker
They're a team that has done an enormous amount of business this summer. In has come Ingersun, an Icelandic centre-back who I'm presuming is the long-awaited replacement for Erik Svyatchenko, who obviously departed for the MLS. Ivar Fossum from Alborg, Gweisung Cho from a team in South Korea, and he's a player who people are really, really excited about. I think he's been banging in goals over there, and he is tipped to be the
00:42:18
Speaker
one of the contenders for the Golden Boot based on how he's performed in the Far East.
00:42:23
Speaker
He's an interesting one. And then Christopher Olsen, that move was made permanent. So a lot of names in, in terms of outgoings, M.M. Asher has gone to Al Ali, and that's a very strange transfer. He arrived in January, didn't really play that much, and then they've managed to sell him for close to 3 million euros. So that's a pretty good bit of business. Still work to be done at FC Michelin. And lots of people I've seen have put them in their kind of top three predictions for next season. And at the moment, I just don't see it.
00:42:52
Speaker
If you look at how they started at the beginning of last season with a spine of Svyachenko, Evander, Anders Dreier, and you look at the performances of Gustav Isaksson, who of course is rumoured to be going, I just, I'm not sure if they're near the level of the team last season and the team last season obviously.
00:43:10
Speaker
didn't perform that amazingly, so I'd be very curious to get your take on whether you see them reaching the medal positions, what you think of the business they've done, and how you fancy their prospects this season. I think they have the potential reaching the top three, but there's also a lot of questions needed to be answered. They have a huge size of squad right now,
00:43:39
Speaker
They have E-Saxon still in the squad, though that everybody is expecting him to leave for a foreign club. They have these strange players running around, just being there, Cabar, Pionesisto, Marani. I don't think that Cabar and Sisto has a future. Either of them has a future in their Samitula. Maybe the Brazilian forward, Maroni, but leaving them aside,
00:44:08
Speaker
they have a solid midfield. They have Martines and Olsson running business in the central piece of the midfield. They have Gigovic as also a prolific player. It surprised me a little bit that they brought in Eva Fossum. That seemed just opportunistic to me. He was on a free transfer. They've seen what he can do in the league. He's not a particularly exciting addition, but I think that
00:44:35
Speaker
I can sort of understand the logic in terms of just adding bodies that are reasonably known. If they can get him to perform at the level he did, not this season, but last season in Albo, it's kind of, you know, like in the NBA, in basketball, where you have these role players who's going to support the star players, you know, the Lebrans in the squad. I see Fosm as this kind of role player supporting the main cast in the Community Land squad. They have a pretty solid
00:45:05
Speaker
in the team. They have Lüzel in goal, a great goalkeeper. They still got some solid pieces in the defence. For me, the big thing is, do they have this offensive creator? Last season, they got a lot from E-Saxon, who performed at an extremely high level. But losing him, or if they lose him, who's going to create for them,
00:45:34
Speaker
They had a lot of good passes in midfield. They have a good lot of solid defensive midfielders in Martinez. But who's the, you know, the chance, who's the creator of the chances who's going to make all the expected assist passes? That's for me the greatest concern right now. But they still have time to look into that issue. And then there's this whole striker thing, you know, with the Gu Song Cho, I think it's pronounced. What kind of level is he performing at?
00:46:04
Speaker
Obviously, he has some great data with him from South Korea, you know, but I have honestly no idea what Korean football is like. So how well is he going to play in Danish football? You know, you know, you always say in England, how well do you perform, play on a Sunday night in Stoke, right? On a Tuesday night in Stoke, right? Yeah. How well is he going to play in a Monday night below?
00:46:33
Speaker
Yeah, exactly. That's the great unknown. And that's part of the reason why I love the Super League so much is because every year, most of the signings that arrive at most of the clubs, I haven't necessarily seen play. You know, I don't watch the South Korean League. I don't watch the Dutch League, for example. So, you know, when players come in for me, it's new for me. So I quite like that. Just to go back to your question on who's going to provide the sort of attacking impetus and the assists, I think based on the
00:47:02
Speaker
the final third of the season. I think Aral Simseer could be an interesting option. He came up with seven assists over the season, showed a real good eye for goal from distance and I think that replacing Watt, Dreyer and Isaacson have given Mitchell in last season is not going to be easy but I think that he could be a big part of that.
00:47:26
Speaker
So the next thing we're going to look at is Odintzer, who finished last season in
Odense and Silkeborg's Focus on Growth
00:47:30
Speaker
eighth. Again, quite a lot of business. Obviously the most notable of those happened very early in the window. Yankuba Minte going to Newcastle and then immediately out on loan to Firenord, but eight million euros. I was very impressed with the fee they managed to get for him after less than a season of top flight football, but also maybe perhaps slightly under the radar. Jakob Brojim, a player who two seasons ago, I think there was a lot of
00:47:54
Speaker
excitement about. His star kind of waned a bit last season. He's gone to the Eredivisé to go ahead Eagles, which I always think is one of the coolest names in football. And Mads Frochke Jenson went to Preston in the English Championship, who seemed to be
00:48:09
Speaker
snapping up lots of talent from the Danish League. So lots of outs. Some interesting ins actually. Rami Alhaj, a Swedish player, arrived from Heronvenen. As I just said, I don't watch the Dutch League, but this guy has some interesting YouTube highlights. Looks very sort of technical and tricky, but I know the fans are very excited about him.
00:48:30
Speaker
and also Mohammed Boya Toure, who I believe has been a top scorer in Sweden before. So can he provide some of the goals that they lost when Gebali departed and obviously with Minte now gone? I don't know. So I'm feeling like Obie could be a big unknown next season. Again, like we were saying with Rana's, probably there's quite a big scope for where they can finish. Obie, if you can compare them to anything,
00:48:57
Speaker
is basically me at 15 years old playing team as your manager, signing a lot of players on free transfers, selling a lot of players as well. It's not that I'm saying it's a bad thing and you can pick up good stuff, good assets on a free transfer, but
00:49:21
Speaker
It is a little bit confusing right now. It's not a criticism of OBE. It's just that I need to see them play at a longer term before it's possible to say something about potential. They've got so many unknown assets in this season, this offseason. So for me, it's like, you know, as you mentioned, they have lost a lot of players, both to outgoing transfers, contracts running out and stuff like that.
00:49:50
Speaker
But they also brought in a bunch of new players. There's so many players coming in that there's invariably got to be a couple of hits in there. And so I've projected them at seventh for next season. So topping the relegation group, which I don't know if they'd take that at this point, you know, a chance to play for a European place probably wouldn't take it before the start of the season. But that's where I see them panning out. I think they look a
00:50:13
Speaker
at least on paper, a stronger proposition than some of the other teams at that end of the table. The team who finished below them last season, Silkeborg. Now, this is a team who I've got some concerns about next season. They've obviously lost Sebastian Jorgensen, finally, the final player from that that front three that won the bronze medal, obviously with Hellenius and Valleys. He's another player who's gone off to Malmo and looking at their front three now and, you know, to go from Valleys, Hellenius Jorgensen,
00:50:43
Speaker
a couple of seasons ago to Kusk, Tony Adamson and Sorin Tengstedt. I mean, there's still goals in that front three. On their day date, all three of them are exciting players. But that doesn't strike me as a team that's going to be threatening the top half of the table this season. Short term, they can be a little challenged. But long term, I think they've done pretty good in solid businesses.
00:51:12
Speaker
They brought in this very talented midfielder by Carson from Vidal, a great piece of business, bringing him in. They brought in Kallen MacCoward from Helsinki, who I was told by people doing businesses in this league, that if Kallen MacCoward was two years younger, he would be able to sailboat to bring him in because he's that good.
00:51:42
Speaker
one of the best players in the last year in the first division. So they've done a lot of good businesses, but it's all a matter of how long time do the incomings need to adjust to the pace and to the schemes in the silica ball. Good businesses and very typical silica ball businesses, I'd say. It reminds me a lot of, for example, the Negro Valley transfer where they bring him in from, I think it's
00:52:10
Speaker
Oscar, I think it is, they bring them in from. So good businesses, but it's a long-term business and I wouldn't be surprised to see Silicon Bowl finish, you know, just above the relegation line or thereabout.
00:52:26
Speaker
Yeah, that's exactly where I have them as well. I think I put them in 10th place. So actually just narrowly avoiding relegation. I think that tactic of signing, you know, the top players from the first division is not one that is new to them. Obviously, Tony Adamson was
00:52:44
Speaker
Yeah, on fire for Helsingorn. He's taken last season to get up to speed a bit and obviously Hellenius was ahead of him in the pecking order. I still have faith that he's going to be a player who can score double-figure goals for them. But yeah, it's a tricky time for them with that front three gone.
00:53:05
Speaker
Obviously, still got Mark Brink, who I know is really important to the system. He really makes them tick. And, you know, they're not going to have Europe this season so they can be a bit more focused. So you never know, they could start to recapture some of the form from the previous season, but a lot does depend on.
00:53:22
Speaker
As you said, Ken Carlson and Macau really step up because they're going to need them to. 10th place last season was the subject of what is being called the great escape given the position they found themselves in in winter and the fact that Lungbi are still a super-league team is testament to the amount of fight they've shown.
00:53:43
Speaker
at the back end of last season.
Lyngby and Vejle's Season Outlook
00:53:45
Speaker
I was quite impressed that they brought in Magnus Jenson from AC Horsons, a sort of cult player, big presence, one of the few sort of players who can play centre back or centre forward, which is always something I love. I don't see Loong be sort of kicking on and going much further up the table next season. But I do think that they could avoid relegation again if they sort of take what they were doing at the back end of last season and sort of harness it for a longer period of time.
00:54:12
Speaker
If you assess the transfers in and out this offseason for Lumboo, it tells us a lot about what they maybe are also still expecting internally in Lumboo. It's the same position as this season, or if you're more correct to say last season, it's a position around one of the relegation spots or maybe the 10th spot right now. They have only added, as you mentioned,
00:54:41
Speaker
They keep the same core of players at the moment, and it is still a thin squad. It's also a squad that might be losing Lucas Hay. He's rumoured to either both Midgeland and Northland, and also IKEF has been mentioned. So I see Limpu as, you know, with the same struggles last season, maybe not conceding as many goals, but still, you know, lacking, creating them,
00:55:11
Speaker
converting them, yeah, and a team expected to be around 10th, 11th, 12th in the league. Yeah. And last season, Loongbi were the second lowest team in terms of XG, but underperformed even that and only ended up scoring 30 goals last season in 32 games. So less than a goal a game, which is something they're really going to need to address. Obviously, Finn Bogerson was injured for a lot of last season and he's back.
00:55:39
Speaker
Magnus Jenson is going to chip in with some goals, but they need to find a way to at least be averaging more than a goal a game or they've got almost no chance. The next two teams or the final two teams are the two promoted teams and I've got to confess, I don't watch a lot of first division football in Denmark. I'm going to try and address that when I go to Denmark next month and I'm going to try and see a first division game. But Viola, obviously a team we know from a couple of seasons ago in the Superleaguer,
00:56:07
Speaker
Tell me a bit about them. I've put the two promoted teams in my predicted league table as the two relegated teams, which I know never happens, but I just don't know enough about them. And I think Viola fans are a bit upset about that. I think they see themselves as a team who have aspirations next season of staying in the league. Yeah, Viola was a very defensive, solid team. They have a lot of foreign players they kept. I've been told that as the leader in defense, they have
00:56:38
Speaker
quality in midfield. Is that July is still there. He's a national team player from Iran. I remember they have the Greek player, a man who leads, I think it's pronounced. Um, and basically it's a team that were, uh, yeah, dominant in the, in the first division in Denmark. Um, it will be interesting to see how well they can create chances going up, um, in the super league, but
00:57:07
Speaker
I also see them as a team, yeah, be positioned around the bottom of the league. It's kind of a, what do you say, money ball team. It's a team where they have a lot of fairness going in. So yeah, it'll be interesting, but I see them in the bottom of the league. Yeah, yeah, me too.
00:57:35
Speaker
An interesting addition they've made actually is a Musa Juwara who was, I believe Odin's the last season, but didn't play much. But he's a player who is only 21 years of age, come from Bologna. So good pedigree. And I think that they're going to need as much quality as possible for next season, if they're going to stand a hope. And yeah, Al Bentos is a player who I loved watching him when I think he joined in the January window, the season they got relegated, but he was
00:58:02
Speaker
you know, blood and thunder, last-minute goals, real sort of leader on and off the pitch. And one of those players is just exciting to watch, which for a centre-back is definitely not always the case. So, yeah, I'm looking forward to having him back and having Viola back and seeing that amazing stadium more often on our screens. The final team is Vior, who I spent last season trying to pronounce in the expectation they were going to get promoted.
Viborg's Unique Team Structure
00:58:32
Speaker
Probably the most famous name there is the manager, Per Franson. Oh, yeah. You explain, Paulson. Yeah, exactly. So people this side of the North Sea will know him. They haven't done a lot of business. Obviously, we talked about Frederick Carlson moving to Silkeborg. That's a big blow for them. Can we expect anything from these guys? How do you compare them to Viola, for example? Because I've just got no idea. It's a solid first racing team.
00:59:00
Speaker
The huge blow for them was losing both by Karlsson and also Andreas Pöndt, who they loaned from a point of view, and then his contract ran out and he signed with Silkyball. It's an experienced team. It's a part-time pro footballers. I don't think, as I remember, they have any full-time players. It's crazy to mention.
00:59:26
Speaker
It's a club structured a lot around the players working part times, part time jobs for the sponsorships, for the sponsorship groups, like, you know, related to the video. So a lot of the sponsors in the video, they have hired in the players working for them. You have a carpenter, you have a
00:59:50
Speaker
real estate agent, you have a building constructor as a club captain. I don't know if you're joking with me. I've never heard this before. We've got a team in the Super League who's part-time. I'm deadly serious right now. I think it's one of the only part-time clubs in the first division beside maybe one or two in the bathroom. But it's an experienced group of players.
01:00:20
Speaker
Steno up who used to play both one blue and espea. They have Mattino Nielsen who played in the in both I think was Norway and he played in Italy They have Martin Spellman who played in one blue and he also played in horse in the fallout years They have mature scared long time pro in the first division profile for a new new curbing latest I think it was
01:00:45
Speaker
They have Kerstin Kaigo-Jakobsen, who is actually right now working part-time carpenter, as I mentioned. They have a solid group of players. It's not that they have bad players. I'm curious to see how well can they adjust to a pro football, full-time life, where they each week are going to play against, you know, like top sides, only focusing on football,
01:01:13
Speaker
Can they have a break from football when they work, their real jobs? Or in the long term, are they going to be tired and exhausted doing this? I don't see Vilo right now as anything else than at the bottom of the league. But obviously, sometimes pigs can fly, and maybe Vilo is the one who's going to fly and get away. But at the moment, no, I don't see them anything else than being 11th or 12th in the league.
01:01:43
Speaker
Well, that's blowing my mind. I've also made a mental note to write a tweet and put it in the drafts about when Carpenter hits the woodwork. Yeah, and maybe he can repair it if he breaks it. That's amazing. I mean, what a story if they're...
01:02:01
Speaker
if they're able to stay in the league. I mean, just crazy. That's brilliant. I love that story. Cool. So, I mean, we've gone through one to 12. We've talked about how we see the lay of the land and where we see teams finishing. I just wanted to get a couple of predictions from you before we go. Firstly, if you had to put your cards on the table now, who do you see being Golden Boot winner for next season?
01:02:27
Speaker
So, Patrick Mortensen is a solid player up there. It depends on how many penalties the headway game gets. No, to be serious, he has a solid name put in there. Isaksson obviously is a solid name, but I guess he's not going to play all season.
01:02:55
Speaker
And then also, oh, he would jump on brand new he's been
01:03:01
Speaker
like a traveller travelling Stryker for all his career, travelling, selling goals. He's produced 0.5 HD and produced 0.5 goals, basically 10 years in a row in his senior football life. So he's also a very solid name in the group of players being capable of going up there.
01:03:29
Speaker
Yeah, for me it's between Ohi, just because of how clinical he was last season and how able he was to always seem to find space in the box. The other name that I'm going to throw out there is Ingvatsen. I just think that, like you said, FC Neuzhland
01:03:49
Speaker
create quite a lot for that position. I think he's going to be a nailed on starter for the season. And I can see him troubling opposition goalkeepers a fair bit next season. So those are my two. One final question for you is apart from Bromby, which I'm going to take as a given, which team are you most sort of excited about watching or most intrigued to see how they do this season? Who's sort of who you're going to be tuning into outside of your team?
01:04:14
Speaker
A lot of teams, actually, because, you know, with the part-timers, how well are they going to perform? It's also interesting to see AGF, if they can continue their travel from last season building on. How well are Midget and going to play from the beginning now, where they have got these new players, this South Korean forward? I'm very interested to see what kind of fit is here. Yeah.
01:04:43
Speaker
But if I have to pick one, you know, I got to say, you know, because, you know, part-timers, the last time we had part-timers in the league was, I think, six or seven years ago with Hobo. And then we also had B93 from Easter Bowl, like 25 years ago or something like that. So it will be interesting to see how well they can cope with the full-timers in the league.
01:05:07
Speaker
Brilliant. Kasper, thank you so much for joining me for that. I'm really excited about new season starting tomorrow with FC Michelin against Vior. We're going to get a first look at the newly promoted side then, so hopefully.
01:05:19
Speaker
at least I'll have a bit more of a clue of what to expect from their playstyle. That's all we've got time for on this Danish Dynamite season preview episode. I'll be back in a few weeks to recap the first few rounds of action with another couple of guests. But in the meantime, if you want to check out everything in the written format, come on over to footballindemark.com where I've
01:05:41
Speaker
posted a couple of new articles recently. If you haven't been on the site for a while, come back and have a read and you can find me on Twitter at football in DK. Thanks for listening and thank you again Kasper for your time. No problem.