Bodo/Glimt – Tottenham 08-05-2025

It's all set for a historic evening – the semi-final of the Europa League, and in little Norway! More specifically: Bodø. Get a taste of it. If someone had said six years ago that Bodø/Glimt would play in the semi-final of the Europa League, most people would have laughed. But now it's happening. The return match will be played at Aspmyra Stadium, with around 7,500 crazy northerners in the stands.

And as true Norwegians, we're crossing our fingers for sour weather, strong winds, and sleet this May evening – just the way we like it!

Bodø/Glimt – Should the European adventure continue?

If we turn back time to 2017, Bodø/Glimt played in the OBOS league. Since then, it has only gone one way – up! After winning the Eliteserien overwhelmingly in 2020, they began to build experience and routine in Europe. In the 2020/21 season, they were eliminated by Milan in the third qualifying round (2–3), but the following year they shocked the entire football world when they crushed Roma 6–1 at Aspmyra in the group stage. Later, they were eliminated by the same team in the quarter-finals. In 2022/23, it stopped in the group stage, but by then Glimt had already established itself as a small "dark horse" in Europe. Now we are in 2024/2025, and Glimt has truly delivered an adventure in Europe. They have won six of seven home games at Aspmyra, with an impressive goal difference of 17–8. Both Lazio (quarter-finals) and Olympiacos (round of 16) were virtually swept off the field in the north – and Glimt deservedly won both matches.

Glimt has been praised for its offensive, fast and technically clever playing style. Some media outlets have even called it “Northern Norwegian tiki-taka”. It is quite incredible what Kjetil Knutsen has achieved. He has built a strong culture and identity based on values ​​such as humility, hard work and development – ​​both on and off the pitch. Pay attention to his interviews – he rarely talks about “winning”, “points” or the like. The focus lies somewhere else entirely.

And as we have pointed out before: Glimt has a unique home field advantage. The cold climate, the fast and wet artificial turf at Aspmyra make it difficult for away teams to adapt – especially when they are not used to such conditions. This is clearly shown in the results at home in the north. This advantage, combined with the team's collective discipline and understanding of each other's roles, has been the key to their success. Against Lazio in the quarter-finals, there were actually several who went home a little "disappointed" – even though Glimt won 2–0. The match could easily have ended 3–0 or 4–0, they were that superior. For the match against Tottenham, Glimt will have key players such as Patrick Berg, Håkon Evjen and Andreas Helmersen back after suspension. This strengthens the team significantly compared to the one that played in London.

Glimt have announced that they are going into the match with a lot of energy – and in full attack mode. They have nothing to lose and are fearless when facing Tottenham. We can probably expect them to go straight for Spurs’ throats and try to control the match, like they did against Lazio. And if Glimt gets an early goal – then it will be very interesting to see how Tottenham handles it. Will they get away with it, or will they keep their cool?

Tottenham – Starved team in search of trophy

This season has been a tough one for Tottenham. They are currently in 16th place in the Premier League, but are still in the race for the Europa League title. That says a lot about the contrasts. Spurs are a starving team – they are desperately chasing a trophy. In fact, they have not won anything since they won the League Cup in 2008, and before that we have to go all the way back to 1991, when they won both the FA and League Cups. Tottenham has been referred to as the Premier League’s “chop chicken” for many years. They are at the top, but always remain without a trophy. You notice that. Now they are only one game away from a final, and potentially two games away from lifting their first trophy in over 15 years. But first they have to survive Bodø – and that in real northern Norwegian spring weather: rain and 3–4 degrees Celsius.

The match in London ended with a solid and deserved Spurs victory, which most statistics also support – with the exception of possession. After they went up 3–0, it seemed that Tottenham took their foot off the gas a bit. From the 60th minute onwards, they looked satisfied, and it didn’t seem like they were particularly interested in puncturing the match completely. But when Saltnes reduced the deficit for Glimt, something happened. It was as if the air went out of Spurs, and it seemed like they realized that the return match in Bodø was going to be anything but easy. Tottenham has played six away matches in the Europa League this season, and stands with 3 wins, 1 draw and 2 losses. The goal difference is 8–9 – not exactly scary statistics for a team with final dreams. The question is what kind of attitude Tottenham comes to Aspmyra with. If they think “everything is crap”, “artificial turf should have been banned” and the like, then it could be tough. Because not many in the team have experience of playing on artificial turf. The last time Spurs played on that surface was against a level 5 team in the FA Cup – that match ended 0–0 after regular time, and they eventually won 3–0 after extra time. Not exactly reassuring. Tottenham have shown that they often struggle against supposedly weaker opposition, but deliver better against top teams. At the same time, it has been a recurring thing that Spurs “collapse” when adversity comes.

The injury list is long – seven players out, and the latest is that James Maddison could be done for the season. A big loss. In addition, Dominic Solanke is uncertain, but could make the return match. Heung-Min Son is back in training, but will probably not be ready before a possible final. In this weekend's match against West Ham, Spurs chose to rest several players. They rotated the entire defense and large parts of the attack line – a clear signal that they prioritize the Europa League highly.

Artificial turf – How big a role does it really play?

Looking at the statistics from this year's season on artificial turf, there is a lot to say for Bodø/Glimt this evening. The yellow and blacks have beaten big teams like Porto, Olympiacos and Lazio at Aspmyra. What do they have in common? It was the first match of the season on artificial turf for all three. In addition, teams like Besiktas, Tel Aviv and Twente have played two artificial turf matches each this season – and all lost in Bodø. The only team to have beaten Glimt at Aspmyra this year is Qarabag. They had a total of 11 artificial turf matches under their belt before the meeting in the north. The goal difference at Aspmyra is 17-8 in seven matches.

That says a lot.

Glimt have shown that they can both win and score against strong opponents at home at Aspmyra. Especially in the matches against Lazio and Olympiacos we saw how they managed to maintain their offensive game, even under pressure. They took advantage of the spaces that opened up when the opponents pressed high, and created several dangerous counterattacks. There were no big openings before a key pass was made – and suddenly there were chances.

Conclusion – Time for "Northern Norwegian tiki-taka"

Glimt have already made history by reaching a semi-final, but now they are just one game away from a final in Bilbao. Considering how much ball Glimt had in London, there is no reason to think they will have any less of a game at Aspmyra. And with the artificial turf as a factor – where the ball rolls faster – they don’t need much space to get through a pass or two. Hopefully some of them will end up in the net.

We think we'll see a good dose of "Northern Norwegian tiki-taka" tonight. It seems almost certain that Glimt will score – and we think there could be at least two goals from the yellow and black. The question is whether Tottenham can respond – and who will ultimately advance. I have a good feeling: We'll have a Norwegian team in the final!

This will probably be the most nerve-wracking match of the year for us Norwegians. And one thing is for sure – there are many who will be sitting with high shoulders and short nails as we approach midnight this Thursday night.

Europa League at 21:00: Bodø/Glimt – Tottenham: Over 1.5 goals to Bodø/Glimt (2.19)

Alternative games:

Europa League at 21:00: Bodø/Glimt – Tottenham: Over 2.5 goals (1.63)

Europa League at 21:00: Bodø/Glimt – Tottenham: Over 5.5 corners to Bodø/Glimt (1.70)