Ståle Solbakken is currently the Norwegian Men’s National team manager. He is also a former professional footballer, totaling 298 appearances and 87 goals. Other achievements include being named 1995 Norwegian midfielder of the year, and 2 Danish Superliga championships with Aalborg and Copenhagen in 1999 and 2000, respectively. He represented Norway 58 times, including appearances in the 1998 World Cup and the 2000 European Championship, and scored nine goals. He ended his playing career in 2001 following a heart attack. 

As a manager, Ståle was named 2004 Norwegian Manager of the Year, and he has won a remarkable 8 Danish Superliga championships with Copenhagen. In addition, he took charge of FC Köln during the 2011/12 season and had a 6-month spell as manager of English side Wolves in the 2012/13 season. 

Ståle Solbakken talks to Markus Fjørtoft (@markusfjortoft) and Ciaran McKenna (@ciaranmckenna8) about his incredible experiences in football from playing to managing; both domestically and internationally. We cover his unique relationship with the Norwegian club Ham-Kam, the dying art of a goal-scoring midfielder and what contributed to him being one, his success as a player at Lillestrøm and the best 18-months of his career at Aalborg in Denmark, life before and after his cardiac arrest, as well as depicting his 20-year management career covering: his coaching philosophy, the qualities which world-class managers inhabit, building a winning culture at FC Copenhagen, fighting with Pep Guardiola to drinking with him, and transitioning into international football as Norwegian National Team manager - the collective mentality within Norwegian culture and balancing that with encouraging individual talent, as well as the challenge of getting Norwegian talent development ‘right’.

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