Bodø/Glimt centre-back duo describe Sporting players, mention cynicism | OneFootball

Sporting lost to Bodø/Glimt, 3-0, this Wednesday, March 11, in the first leg of the Champions League round of 16. After the match, Odin Bjortuft and Jostein Gundersen, the central defensive duo presented by the Norwegian team, discussed some moments of the match with a mix of humor, and the second leg at Alvalade.

In statements to 'NRK', Odin Bjortuft spoke about how the arrival of coach Kjetil Knutsen and his assistant Gaute Helstrup helped him become a much more complete defender, denying that the coaching staff had 'whipped' the players in the literal sense of the word. "They didn't exactly whip me, but they worked me well. This took on violent proportions, with neck grips and whippings," he began by saying.

Amid laughter, the 27-year-old footballer continued: "This developed in a different direction than we had planned... I hope my wife doesn't see this!" Meanwhile, Jostein Gundersen, who had received a yellow card in the final minutes of the first half, commented on the duel he had with Colombian Luis Suárez, stating that the Sporting forward tried to get him sent off in the second half, a scenario for which he had been warned during the team's halftime talk.

"In top-level football, you can notice the cynicism, and since I had a yellow card, they [the Sporting players] were eager to give me another one. We talked about this at halftime, so I was aware and feel that I was smart in how I played in the second half," he highlighted.

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