Rosenborgvs.Lillestrom

The Kanarifugla won both home and away meetings between the teams last season and will journey to the Lerkendal Stadion looking to make it four victories in five matches since the start of June.

Match preview

Rosenborg turned in a superb team display last Monday when they picked up a deserved 1-0 victory over Premier League heavyweights Manchester United in a mid-season friendly at the Lerkendal Stadion.

Playing their first per-season game after the 2023-24 campaign, the Red Devils' lack of fitness and match sharpness was evident as they failed to pose any serious threat to the hosts before Noah Jean Holm struck the winner in the third minute of stoppage time.

Head coach Alfred Johansson will hope Monday's victory can serve as a catalyst for a strong run of form as they return to action in the Eliteserien, where they find themselves scrambling for points in the bottom half of the table.

Rosenborg head into the weekend without a win in eight of their last 10 league matches since late April, losing six and claiming two draws — having picked up four wins in their previous six games preceding this run.

With 17 points from 14 Eliteserien games, the Troll Children currently sit 11th in the table, level on points with HamKam and Kristiansund, and just four points above rock-bottom Sandefjord.

Lillestrom, on the other hand, returned to winning ways in style as they picked up a comfortable 3-1 victory over Stromsgodset when the sides met at the Arasen Stadion last Saturday.

After falling behind to goals from Thomas Lehne Olsen and Eric Kitolano, Logi Tomasson netted shortly after the half-hour mark to pull one back for Stromsgodset, but Marius Lundemo netted in the 47th minute to put the hosts in a commanding lead and hand them all three points.

Prior to that, Lillestrom saw their three-match winning streak come to an end on July 7, when they were beaten 3-0 by Molde courtesy of goals from Kristian Eriksen, Mathias Fjortoft Lovik and an own goal from Mads Christiansen.

Andreas Georgson's men have won six of their 14 Eliteserien games so far while losing seven and claiming one draw to collect 19 points and sit seventh in the league table, level on points with sixth-placed Stromsgodset.

While Lillestrom will be looking to pick up where they left off against Stromsgodset, they have failed to win 14 of their last 16 visits to the Lerkendal Stadion, losing nine and claiming five draws since May 2008.

Rosenborg Norwegian Eliteserien form:

L

W

D

L

W

L

Rosenborg form (all competitions):

W

D

L

W

L

W

Lillestrom Norwegian Eliteserien form:

L

L

W

W

L

W

Team News

Former Hull City man Markus Henriksen has missed the last two games after coming off injured against Odd on July 7 and the 31-year-old is a major doubt for Rosenborg.

He is joined on the club's injury table by Swedish defender Jonathan Augustinsson, who continues his long road to full fitness after suffering a severe injury in April 2023.

Marius Sivertsen Broholm hit the woodwork twice against Manchester United last time out and the teenage striker should retain his role in the XI, alongside Jesper Reitan-Sunde and 28-year-old striker Ole Christian Saeter, who has seven goals under his belt this season.

Meanwhile, Lillestrom will take to the pitch without several key players down the spine of the team as Erling Knudtzon (leg), Martin Ove Roseth (foot) and Elias Solberg (foot) all continue their spells on the sidelines.

Lars Ranger has been out of action since coming off with a severe injury in March, while 33-year-old defender Eric Larson has missed the last two games after coming off injured against KFUM on June 27.

Rosenborg possible starting lineup:

Tangvik; Cornic, Ceide, Jenssen, Reitan; Vaananen, Selnaes, Nypan; Broholm; Reitan-Sunde, Saeter

Lillestrom possible starting lineup:

Christiansen; Charles, Garnaas, Gabrielsen, Toennessen; Ibrahimaj, Lundemo, Aasen; Kitolano, Olsen, Va

We say: Rosenborg 2-1 Lillestrom

The last five meetings between Rosenborg and Lillestrom have produced a combined 18 goals and we anticipate another end-to-end contest at the Lerkendal Stadion. Johansson's men boast a solid home record against the Kanarifugla and we are backing them to secure all three points here.

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