Start – Lillestrøm 26/07/2025

"From under-heating fiasco to the warm scent of a promotion dream – Start has truly been reborn."

IK Start was truly on the verge of total collapse after the defeat in the qualifying match against Bryne on Saturday, November 25, 2023, where the lack of underheating created national chaos and Bryne was awarded the victory with 0-3 on walkover. The club was ridiculed, the supporters were furious, and the management stood on the edge of the abyss. But instead of sinking deeper, a brutal internal cleanup began – both sporting and administrative.

A new coach with a clear philosophy was brought in, and the club realized that if they were to become sustainable again, they had to focus on youth and locality again. We can all remember the magical years under Tom Nordlie (2004-2006). At that time, the team from Kristiansand had a total of 17 local players in the stable, and of these, a total of 15 were from the South and 11 of them had come through Start's own junior department. Marius Johnsen, Steinar Pedersen, Bård Borgersen, Kristofer Hæstad and the beloved Fredrik Strømstad were regulars when we sat on the bench in front of the TV on Sunday evenings to watch football extras. It was mackerel football that became the big talk throughout the week that followed, and suddenly Start had both 3 and 4 regulars on the national team. But times have changed dramatically in recent years, but IK Start is a club that few people have that much against, I feel.

Azar Karadas took over before the 2024 season and although the season did not start all that well, there was a new team of young talents from the Agder region who needed time to reach the level in the OBOS league, they finished 12th in the 2024 season, but they have continued to focus on the local boys and have gained a little more experience from other teams, and they are now in 2nd place only four points behind the guests from Lillestrøm. They play in a 3-5-2 formation which naturally gives them a solid defensive foundation against most teams in the OBOS league, so they often come forward with speed and many players when they run their transitions, and right up there they have had a goal guarantee in Mathias Grundetjern (sold to Vålerenga this summer) who stood with 11 goals in 12 games for the yellow and black from Kristiansand.

They come in here with a 3-1-2 record so far on home turf and a 13-9 goal record, which shows a team that also concedes a few goals when playing in front of their own supporters, and perhaps this will be decisive when they meet the league leader from Åråsen?

Lillestrom SK

Turn the clock back a year and Lillestrøm has just lost its head coach (Georgsson became the set piece coach for Manchester United). This was the second time in as many years that LSK would suddenly find themselves without a head coach, and most who follow the club from Åråsen closely probably felt that they were living in a state of deja vu. The duo of Andreas Georgsson and Robin Asterhed, who were supposed to take the canaries to new heights, had just been split up, just like their predecessors Petter Myhre and Geir Bakke were, when Bakke decided to take over VIF in the middle of the 2023 season. The board decided to move Asterhed up from the assistant coach role to head coach, but it is a completely different thing to have the main responsibility for a team like LSK, versus being the one who sets up exercises on the field.

It took five games as manager before the board had to take action and bring in someone with a little more authority and experience. The choice fell on David Nielsen who would combine the coaching job with TV work for Danish TV, and he flew back and forth between training and the job as a TV expert in Denmark (maybe not the best choice of coach?) Then it was over for Nielsen after five more games, and finally the choice fell on Dag Eilef Fagermo. He came in with new passion and had really believed that they could do this together. But with the answer in hand, it wouldn't have helped even if Lilli Bendriss and Snåsamannen had been at Åråsen now, this LSK team was not good enough to stay in the Eliteserien and it ended as it had to, with relegation and a Lillestrøm team that would play in the OBOS league in 2025.

What has happened to the club from Åråsen since relegation last year?

Hans Erik Ødegaard came in as the new head coach from Sandefjord (LSK wanted him when Georgsson left, but since Hans Erik is as loyal as he is, he politely declined because he was in the middle of the season with another team) and with him on the team he got Eirik Mæland as assistant coach (he was Erling Moe's assistant in Molde) and together with a board that has given them financial leverage, they have completely turned everything around. And suddenly Lillestrøm looks better than they have in 10-15 years.

With a clear 4-3-3 formation where everyone knows how to act together both offensively and defensively, we have seen a team that is constantly getting a little better with each match played. The focus has changed from results to development, and with a squad that was determined that the 2024 season was not something they wanted to be familiar with, everything from the fielders to the kiosk personnel at Åråsen has gone in the same direction in 2025, and so far it has resulted in leading the OBOS league and seeing promotion in the distance, as well as playing all the way to the cup final at Ullevaal in December.

The squad that Ødegaard took over in January had a total of 33 players under contract (when you play 11 against 11 in training and still have 11 men who are not allowed to play, you can understand that there can be a bit of a bad atmosphere within a group of players?) But this has now been reduced to 23-24 players and this has also helped the competitive situation within the team, which in turn means that Ødegaard can muster his best team at all times.

Mads Hedenstad is at the back with 9 clean sheets so far this season, and this is evidence of a team that has taken their defensive problems seriously from the 24` season. Ruben Gabrielsen (in my opinion one of the best stoppers in the country) together with Espen Garnås have both raised their defensive game to new heights this season, and both love to block shots or make a sucking sliding tackle when necessary. In front of them they have a midfield trio consisting of Vebjørn Hoff, Eric Kitolano and Markus Karlsbakk (perhaps one of Lillestrøm's best this season) who contribute with running power, creativity and eminent technique and who all complement each other to the maximum, and right up front they have Thomas Lehne Olsen who so far has 10 goals in 11 games in the OBOS league. Another player worth keeping an eye on is 22-year-old Salieu Drammeh, who plays on the right wing. He has 4 goals and 3 assists so far and has really taken the Åråsen crowd by storm since his transfer from BK Frem in level 2 in Denmark.

Ødegaard and Mæland have created a strong LSK team where everyone knows their roles in the team and where there is always room for creativity within given limits, as Nils Arne Eggen so beautifully said during Rosenborg's heyday: If you structure A, B and C, it is much easier to be creative in D and E than for the players to come up with things themselves. And I feel this is seen in today's LSK team, the offensive and defensive tasks are set in stone, but you should always be allowed to add a little spice.

Bet suggestions

The team from Lillestrøm has yet to lose in the OBOS league and with a cup final dangling like a carrot far ahead, I would think this will give a huge boost to the player group when the second half of the season kicks off. They come in here with a 4-3-0 and 19-5 goal difference away from home so far this season, and they will probably be a few numbers too big for a Start team in a tailwind.

OBOS league at 14:00: IK Start – Lillestrøm: Away win (1.91)

Alternative bet: Lillestrøm over 1.5 team goals (1.71)