Albert Gronbaek vs Rosenborg BK - Match Report
FK Bodo/Glimt 3 - 2 Rosenborg BK | Norwegian Eliteserien 2023 | Written on December 31, 2023
Player Information
Name: Albert Gronbaek
Club: FK Bodo/Glimt
Nationality: Denmark
Age: 22 (Born 2001)
Position in match: Centre-midfielder (left)
Preferred foot: Right
Height: 1.76m
Match Stats (via FotMob):
Minutes played: 88
Touches: 29
Shots: 2
Goals: 0
Expected Goals: 0.12
Assists: 1
Expected Assists: 0.60
Passes: 11/16
Pass Accuracy: 69%
Successful Dribbles: 1/2
Match Summary:
Fairly even match with both teams creating good chances
Bodo had the majority of the possession but were ineffective at creating real clear cut chances
The red card for Rosenborg when they were already down somewhat killed the game off for Bodo
Rosenborg pressed pretty passively, access to the 2nd phase was relatively straight forward for Bodo
From here, Bodo looked to create wide overloads to access the ‘cutback area’ and create from there
Bodo were pressing pretty aggressively as Rosenborg tried to play out from the first back
Rosenborg would occasionally switch it up by trying to go long
Their main method of attack was to stay compact and break quickly when they had the ball
Player Analysis:
Technical:
Lack of on-ball volume must be noted - 10 passes and 29 touches
First touch out in front of his feet, not killing the ball dead
First touch sets up next action in tight spaces (?)
Will receive ball on the half-turn well if he has adequate space to do so
Controlled sprint when carrying, scanning/dribbling with his head up (55:25)
Medium-length touch, quick short strides when carrying at a sprint
Comfortable carrying under pressure, still gets his head up to look for options
Good at escaping pressure via these quick steps (good acceleration)
Long ground passes with instep have nice weight, no bobble (strikes middle of the ball, not top/bottom)
One lofted ball with instep, accurate and nicely weighted
Showed one-footedness to the point where he would inefficiently turn his body to play a pass with his right foot
When dribbling and being closed down by defender, showed good understanding of how to use defender’s momentum against them
Tried to receive with full back to goal twice (no half-turn),
One backheel flick-on didn’t work (almost did, not properly weighted)
Other time got bodied off the ball by pressure from defender
Tactical:
Had a free-ish role despite starting as LCM in 3, always wanting to be ball-side
Was completely devoid of any responsibility in build-up - once the ball reached the final third then he would become extremely active
Bodo looked to create wide overloads on the right hand side, Gronbaek would often recognize when to fully drift towards the right and combine to exploit numerical advantage (he became the +1)
If ball was on left side, he would start high in the left halfspace, between the opposition midfield and defensive lines
Was constantly looking to be an option BTL, especially in the gaps left between the Rosenborg midfield 3
Wants to be the guy assisting/scoring the goal (final action, output machine)
Constant scanning in middle/final 3rd and congested areas helped him control the tempo of his play (controlled it very well)
slower play in less congested zones, 1-2 touches in congested central areas
Showed top-quality off-ball movement
Especially when ball was on left side, would constantly make a run from around the middle of the pitch (zone 14) to the left halfspace
Whether he received the ball or not, this ensured he was always in and around the box when Bodo were in the final third (where he is most dangerous)
These runs also helped push opposition players further back towards their goal
Sometimes he failed to recognize a passing lane to check into, this is not a common theme of his game as he is always moving, looking to receive the ball
If run was made and he did not receive the ball, he continued to move to find space to receive in
This makes him extremely difficult to follow, disrupts opposition back line organization/communication
Whenever ball was on right side and he had not drifted over to create overload, he would wait in ‘cutback zone’ for direct cutbacks/second balls
Good timing of late runs, would often be unmarked as defenders are focused on ball + other players in the box
Seems to have ‘carry-first’ instinct, but does not over-carry
Because he carries with his head up and with the intention to find a teammate in an advanced position, does not over-carry/carry into a crowd
Physical:
Skinny build
First 3-5 steps of his carrying push him past defenders, maintains same pace for the remainder of the carry (good acceleration + pace)
Psychological:
There were some occasions when he didn’t seem engaged OOP, somewhat walking to track back
On other occasions, he hustled to get back into position and actually intercepted/disrupted a few passes