Climbing the Mountain: Bob Bradley at Stabæk

Who is, Wiki tells me, also part Chinese (had a Chinese grandparent).

 

Plus, don't forget DeAndre Yedlin.

(What? Columbus was a dope? Oh, I see, never mind.)

 

Chadli?

 

Nacer? Moroccan

 

Good 2-0 win at Lillestrom, and Bob's boys sit in a very respectable 5th place after 4 matches. And looks like Cole Grossman will be an important player for Bob, as he started once again in MF.

 

Now where is that butler with the crow? Seems like he should have been here by now.

 

What are expectations for the bob and the team this year ? A top half finish ? Or some silverware ?

 

Oddschecker has them at 80:1 to win, 17:1 to finish in the top three, and 11/2 to get relegated. Middle or below, not at the bottom.

 

Depends who you ask. Media predictions before the season started had us in 12th-16th but those guys don't actually follow the preseason much and should not be taken seriously.

The team looked a lot better this winter than the last, and the trend has continued in the first matches of the season. I think most Stabæk fans expect us to finish at least in the top half. The most optimistic ones see us as a contender for silverware. It is possible but we depend on a few teams that are better than us to underperform for that to happen.

Personally I think Rosenborg, Molde, Odd, Vålerenga and possibly Strømsgodset will fight over the medals and that we are one of the strongest teams behind that group along with Sarpsborg 08. Then of course the summer transfer window can change things. Still, there is no way we belong in the relegation battle this season, even considering that we most likely will not see the same spending this summer as we did last year. I expect us to finish between 4th and 10th - with the lowest odds on 5th-7th.

After four games last year, we had played one good match in the opener against Sogndal followed by three poor performances. We were lucky and got three points away against Brann though, making it six points in total at this point last season. This year, we have played four good games and probably deserved even more than the seven points we have at the moment.

 

"Overall, pretty solid"


Just to add to what I said in the previous post: I agree with Bob that we are a pretty solid team this year. We're much better organized, solid in defence. While our team last year always looked likely to go on a five game losing streak at any time (and indeed did), the odds for the same to happen this season is considerably higher. And that's the main reason why I say we'll definately stay clear of the relegation battle or a need to buy our way out of it in the summer. Some of the things that we criticized for good reason in 2014 seem to be in place in 2015, which means the minimum level of the team is raised and results are less random.

 

Bob, the Builder . . .

 

As 7’says, the biggest improvement from last season is the defensive organization and structure. Where we had none last season, things look quite solid this season. Second half against Lillestrøm was very impressive in this respect. Lillestrøm’s player where totally pacified. Attacking is not at the same level though, but with such a solid defense it might not be as crucial. (I really can't remeber us looking this solid in defence, must have been a long tima ago...) 7'n can you remeber? Under JJ in 2007? In 2008 it was pretty much down to the Amazing "spider" Annan spinning his defencive web across the midfield...

Makes you wonder why. I think there are a couple of reasons. The most important reason being that we have had the central four players (Issah, Grossman, Skjønnsberg and Næss) in the squad throughout the preseason, where we last season got Fontanello and Sokolowski in on deadline day, and Adu just a short month before. Second we do not have sinkholes in the lineup like we did with Fontanello and Stephens. And third we do not misuse young talent in the wrong positions. Players are playing in the positions where they have their strengths.

BUT – its only 4 games into the season!

 

Just beat Tromsø 2-0 on 69° north. Grossman scored our 2nd. Another clean sheet and our 3rd consecutive win.

 

Enjoy him while you can Staebek.

 

Ah, the wonderful melange that is Suriname...I got a wife from there. And the Oranje got Seedorf, Winter, Davids, Hasselbaink and many others.

 

Bradley or Grossman?

 

Bobbo

 

Botho?

 

Bradley has Staebeck tied for second . . .

http://www.mlssoccer.com/news/artic...scores-bob-bradleys-stabaek-win-third-straigh

AMSTERDAM – Cole Grossman bagged a tidy insurance goal as Bob Bradley's Stabaek ran their Tippeligaen win streak to three games with a 2-0 road decision over Tromso on Thursday night.

Three minutes after Ernest Asante fired the Blue Ones ahead, Grossman (pictured above) stuck around in the box to capitalize on a the weak clearance of a corner kick. The former Real Salt Lake midfielder accepted a short feed to rip home a left-footed shot from 15 yards on the edge of halftime.

Stabaek needed no more than Grossman's second strike of the young season, closing out the win by extending their shutout run in league play to 285 minutes and the version that covers all competitions to 375 minutes. Through five rounds, Bradley has his side level on points with three other teams in second place.

 

Well, yeah I still won't be sad to see the back of him...

 

Points are points.


It's good to hear that Bob is not too pleased with what was probably our worst match of the season. This one was more about the other team having a bad start to their season really. More chaotic, disorganized on our part and Tromsø had their chances. Still, we deserved the three points.

 

Grossman becoming a hot commodity is he?

Of course you won't.

 

Bahahaha . . .

 

There is one thing you learn when you follow your favorite club for many years, through thick and thin: Everyone is replaceable. And very few are missed when they are gone. Your local club is not about the players and coaches who come and go, it's about the constants.

Stabæk has almost always done a good job when replacing coaches (with one or two exceptions), be it with a surprisingly big name or someone virtually unknown. I was never sad to see the back of any of our previous coaches either, no matter how successful and likeable.

 

Absolutely . . .

Most of us Americans are here, because of Bob and we have a different viewpoint. We haven't followed Stabaek for years through the ups and downs. That much is certain.

Our perspectives are a bit skewed.

First off we see an American coach ploughing new ground, as the first American coaching a club side in Europe. Many pundits, of course, picked Stabaek to bounce right back down, after their promotion, even after hiring Bob as the coach. Then, of course, they finished ninth and even advancing to the NM Cuppen semi-finals before losing 1-0.

By most accounts, Bradley did a commendable job:

http://www.mlssoccer.com/news/artic...atisfied-first-season-stabaek-ready-back-work

Not only was it his first season with the promoted Norwegian side and the first ever for an American coach in a European top flight, but Bradley also kept the club up, finishing 10 points above the trap door in ninth place. He did so by managing to incorporate 12 new players into a team that received about 10,000 minutes from field players 21 years old and younger while covering for a few key departures.

Any time that a club is promoted, there will be players the coach can project playing at the higher level and some that will not be. Obviously, if the coach plays the wrong players, the team can tumble right back down into relegation. Fans, of course, have their favorite players, they wish to see develop and get playing time. This is not always going to work out for a recently promoted squad. It should also be noted, as mentioned in the article above, that Norway is a selling league, players are going to come and go, rotating through.

Now here is the rest of the story from an American perspective.

1. Bradley was originally hired as an "interim" coach for the United States. many believed him to be under qualified and or wanted someone with more of a "big name" or reputation. He came in to a situation where there was resentment, already waiting.

2. Bob has a talented son, Michael, that many folks believed received preferential treatment. The "Nepotism as Serious Discussion" threads here on Big Soccer quickly reached thousands of posts with the same posters driving the same circular arguments.

So, anyway, Bob, mostly through no fault of his own, is a bit of a polarizing figure in USA soccer circles. Some, even on this thread, still root against him to validate long standing animosity.

Coaching, under the best of circumstances, also, is never a position where everyone in the circle is going to be happy with the guy at the top.

Anyway, just one person's thoughts . .