Sandefjord – Molde 3-1 (0-1)
In a close and even match between Sandefjord and Molde, it was a former Bodø/Glimt player who was to be decisive.
25-year-old Stian Kristiansen was brought to Bodø/Glimt as recently as last autumn, but made the journey to Sandefjord half a year later.
There he has already managed to become a very important piece, and on Sunday he scored the winning goal against the old club’s biggest golden rival.
Kristiansen’s header late in the second half sent Sandefjord up to a 2-1 lead. In overtime, Aleksander Damnjanovic set up Nilsson to make it 3-1.
– It was really nice to win here at home, Kristiansen told TV 2 after the match.
– I think it’s an insanely good performance. We drive over Molde for large parts of the game, continued the Sandefjord defender.
Disappointed mOLDE COACH
There was also nothing to say about the points remaining in Sandefjord. It was the home team that created the most, and after the break there was sometimes only one team on the pitch.
Molde coach Erling Moe was anything but satisfied with what he saw.
– What we deliver today is probably a bottom level that I have not been involved in before. The performance we are putting together today is far from the standard we have for ourselves, was Moe’s harsh judgement.
At the same time as Molde collapsed, Håkon Evjen ensured that Bodø/Glimt got three points at home against Strømsgodset. The returning midfielder scored the game’s only goal barely 20 minutes before full-time.
This means that Bodø/Glimt are now three points ahead of Molde. Brann, which struck Rosenborg on Saturday, is hunting the closest. The red shirts are two points behind Glimt. Both Molde and Brann have played one match more than the reigning league champions from Bodø.
Gulbrandsen with creamery house
However, it started well for Molde. Fredrik Gulbrandsen recently returned from injury, and he needed just over half an hour to send the visitors from Romsdalen into the lead.
The striker received the ball from Isak Helstad Amundsen before tapping in from distance. The shot was very hard and went over the crossbar and over the goal line behind Hugo Keto.
Both teams had several chances to score before the break, but the visitors took a 1-0 lead into the dressing room.
The Molde camp, on the other hand, was not satisfied with its own performance.
– We look like an Obosliga team in this first round. But we lead. We have many things to improve on, Magnus Wolff Eikrem said during the break.
Turned the game around
But it didn’t turn out that way. Instead, it was Sandefjord who were the clear leading team, and it wasn’t many minutes before the equalizer was a fact.
Sandefjord had already created several gigantic opportunities and had a goal canceled for offside when Simon Amin ensured balance in the accounts.
He was played free by Christopher Cheng and from the corner of the five-yard box the midfielder was in cash.
The home team continued to press after the equaliser, and after 77 minutes the whalers got their reward.
Stian Kristiansen rose highest into the air on a corner kick and slotted home the 2-1 score.
Molde pressed for the equaliser, but instead of 2-2, it was a sorely missed winger who was supposed to show up for the home team.
In overtime, Danilo Al-Saed stood up with a solo performance. He got past one Molde defender after another, before serving Aleksander Damnjanovic Nilsson, the midfielder was given a simple task of scoring the game’s last goal.
