Former Leeds player regrets betting on Bodø/Glimt v Sporting: My word... | OneFootball

After having beaten Sporting 3-0 this Wednesday, in the first leg of the Champions League round of 16, Bodø/Glimt once again surprised European football. The Norwegians sealed the match with precise shots from Sondre Fet (from the penalty spot), Ole Blomberg, and Kasper Hogh, in the 32nd, 45+1st, and 71st minutes, respectively.

The Norwegian team, which, in this current 2025/26 season alone, had already defeated 'giants' such as Atlético de Madrid, Manchester City, and Inter Milan, thus took an important step towards qualifying for the Champions League quarter-finals, forcing one sports commentator in particular to eat his words.

This was the case for Mike Grella, a former American player who stood out at clubs like Leeds United, New York Red Bulls, and Viborg, and who, ahead of the first leg of the round of 16 of what is the biggest club competition in European football, predicted an easy win for the Lions—who were described as "cynical" by Bodø/Glimt's central defensive pair.

"Sporting are better than them. Sporting will beat them. And Sporting are better than them at what they do. Sporting are better than them at the game they want to play," he declared at the time of the draw, in statements made on the 'Golazo' program, broadcast by the American TV channel CBS Sports.

Now, confronted with these very words, he himself reacted with embarrassment and a sheepish smile: "I was wrong, very wrong. I'm not joking. Be careful when you play against them. Don't sleep when you play against these guys, man. My God... They can play football."

"Unbelievable. They played incredible football, dominated the game, surprised me... It's unbelievable, unbelievable," added Nigel Reo-Coker, former English international and his fellow panelist, admitting that he did not expect such a show of strength from Kjetil Knutsen's men at the Aspmyra Stadion.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇵🇹 here.