New milestone for 'Norwegian Maldini'
Wednesday 22 April 2009
e-mail
Print
Digg
Save
Roar Strand has played 600 games for Rosenborg (©Getty Images)
Sunday's Norwegian Eliteserien contest between Rosenborg BK and Odd Grenland proved a very special occasion for one player in particular, as Rosenborg favourite Roar Strand made his 600th competitive outing for the Trondheim outfit.
Club loyalty
The 39-year-old made his first appearance for RBK in 1989, and aside from a one-year loan spell with Molde FK in 1993, he has remained loyal to the club, enjoying the lion's share of their 13 consecutive titles between 1992 and 2004. In total, he has helped the side clinch 14 league crowns and five Norwegian Cups, largely as an industrious midfielder with an eye for goal but more recently as a right-back.
Norwegian Maldini
Those achievements earned Strand a celebration featuring numerous Norwegian football personalities before Sunday's 1-1 draw at Lerkendal Stadium and the praise continued long after the game. "I'm very impressed by Roar Strand's professionalism," commented Rosenborg coach Erik Hamrén. "To reach such a figure is not something you see very often in today's football. He has also kept up the quality of his game; the one player that springs to mind in the modern game like Strand is AC Milan's Paolo Maldini."
Injury luck
The player himself laughed off the comparison. "We're in different worlds, Maldini and I," he said. "The high number of games is mostly a result of me being lucky with injuries." Whatever the reason, he sits comfortably atop the all-time top-flight appearances list in Norway, with 406 matches to his name while his closest challenger, Christer Basma, retired after 348 encounters.
Retirement plans
That figure is unlikely to increase greatly as the Trondheim native has long signalled his intent to call time on his career at the end of the season. "I've had an eventful career, but I feel that the legs are getting a little slower," he explained. "Earlier I had a few doubts about whether I was going to hang up my boots – now I am 100 per cent certain."
European memories
Once he has finally played his last game, Strand will unsurprisingly have plenty of memories to look back on, with Rosenborg's UEFA Champions League jousts sure to figure prominently. "The 2-1 win away at AC Milan in 1996 is of course high on the list, along with the 3-0 win at Borussia Dortmund in 1999 and the 2-0 win at home against Real Madrid in 1997," he said. "Loads of good memories."
He is truly a Rosenborg legend
Vidar Riseth on Roar Strand
Riseth praise
Among those who came to voice their appreciation on Sunday was Lillestrøm SK centre-back Vidar Riseth, a former team-mate at Rosenborg and with the Norwegian national team, for whom Strand won 42 caps and scored four goals. "If they can erect a statue of John Arne Riise outside of Aalesund's stadium, there should be a statue of Roar Strand at Lerkendal," said Riseth. "He is truly a Rosenborg legend."
©uefa.com 1998-2009. All rights reserved.
