– It was a good feeling, I can say that a lot.
Emil Breivik smiled in his usual way when asked by Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation (NRK) how it felt to be in the senior national team team for the first time.
Breivik did receive the letter on Monday evening, at the Molde Hotel in Istanbul, where he was preparing for Tuesday’s decisive Champions League play-off.
And Solbakhin did not want to disrupt the preparations for the match. Therefore, he had instructed Molde coach Erling Mo to pass on the news already the evening before the selection was announced.
– It was good to know then that it wasn’t full on match day, Breivik says.
Emil Breivik has been a big part of Molde for a long time. On Tuesday the estimate came.
Photo: Sven Ove Ekornsvag/NTB
– I thought I did something wrong
Brevik already has only one under-21 international under his belt.
– How was the letter obtained?
Erling called me while I was having dinner, and I didn’t understand anything. I thought I did something wrong. But he told me, and was excited to see my reaction. It was a nice conversation, says the midfielder.
– Did you get sleep?
– I’m a bit late, and I had to make some phone calls home and nearby. But I managed to sleep well in the end, he smiled.
When asked in July about the national team’s ambitions The newspaper onlineHe replied lightly: “Maybe in two years.”
– Yes, it happened faster than I expected. But I’ll take the chance now that I have it. I don’t know if asking for playing time is too much, but it would be nice anyway to see what it’s like to be in the senior national team, he says.
– Some of the worst things I’ve seen
His colleague Martin Ellingsen can’t get enough of all the pink Breivik. The 23-year-old is believed to have been the bigger player in the match in Istanbul, with Molde best, but lost 2-1.
– Emil Breivik Today, it’s one of the worst things I’ve seen. He walked on water there, to be completely honest. Crazy fight by Emil. “If he could just be selected for the national team every time we play a game, that would be great,” Ellingsen tells NRK.
Molde coach Erling Mo is delighted that the midfielder is receiving attention and recognition from the national team manager.
– It deserves to be a decree, as it has improved over time. Now he has to go into the meeting and show the same courage he showed here against Galatasaray. It will certainly be difficult for Staal to keep him away from the team, Moe tells NRK.
– Could it become my next big generator export?
– I hope not, Mo responds with the blink of an eye, fully aware that it will be difficult to keep players of this caliber if development and performances continue.
Destroyed for U21 EC
Breivik has played brilliantly for Molde this season. Over 18 Elite Series matches, he scored six goals and five assists from the midfield position.
He himself describes his great strengths as a player who scores a lot of goals, runs a lot and is good with the ball.
– When you perform as you do now, and get a place in the national team, what impact does that have on your motivation and ambitions in your career more?
– It adds more flavour, I just want to keep getting better. He’s shown that it’s possible to play for the national team when you’re in Molde, it’s a great show. And he says: I want to be in my birthday in the fall too.
The withdrawal from the national team squad takes place just two months after Breivik joined Lev Gunnar Smrud’s Under-21 squad for this summer’s European Championship finals.
Solbakken’s squad also included Marcus Solbakken and Assamese Sahraoui, who were sent off just minutes before the end of the UEFA European Under-21 Championship.
Solbakken blinked aha
Solbakken says the following about what he thinks about the fact that there are several players in the national team so soon after they have been easily traded off for a starting place in the U-21 national team.
– There are different coaches, different entrances, and different team formations. We’ve been traveling around and seeing a lot of different players lately. This also applies to Antonio Nossa and Assam Sahraoui, who didn’t play much in that tournament either, Solbakken tells NRK.
What have you seen in Brevik in recent months that makes you think he’s fit now?
– I’ve watched him for a long time, but I think what he did against Galatasaray now… He brought the best of what he did from the Premier League to the Galatasaray game, where there is full pressure and a different kind of opponent. He had the same situations: he had to use his shot, he had to use his nose on goal, he had to use his physics. He was not afraid to keep the ball in the right positions. “Father,” Solbakken said, “he’s doing the same thing now as he did against Sarpsborg.”
Breivik will be happy to hear that testimony.
– I know for myself that I have the same mentality that I play in a match like this (Galatasaray) as in the elite match. They are just soccer players. He says it is possible to choose a man even if you face Galatasaray or an elite team in the league.
“Infuriatingly humble internet trailblazer. Twitter buff. Beer nerd. Bacon scholar. Coffee practitioner.”
