Norway national team manager Stale Solbakken has strongly criticized his Scottish counterpart Steve Clarke, labeling Scotland as “unprofessional” after they abruptly cancelled a planned behind-closed-doors training match, citing player injuries.
Background of the Cancelled Fixture
The fixture was scheduled for Monday at Scotland’s training camp in Charlotte, North Carolina, and had been arranged months in advance to provide fringe players with match practice ahead of the World Cup. However, the Norwegian camp was informed of the cancellation late on Friday night, following their final training session. This forced Solbakken to adjust his tactical approach for Sunday’s 1-1 friendly draw against Morocco in New Jersey.
Solbakken’s Strong Reaction
“It was just as surprising to me, and it is unprofessional of Scotland,” Solbakken told Norwegian broadcaster NRK. “It’s unprofessional that their manager didn’t call me personally, that they used their team manager to call and tell us this after we completed training. I don’t believe the injuries they are blaming this on happened during their last session.”
Clarke’s Response
Scotland head coach Steve Clarke downplayed the disruption on Sunday evening, telling the BBC that the match was only meant to be a one-hour training ground exercise. Clarke added that his squad had picked up some minor injuries during the week and decided against fulfilling the fixture, just over a day after Scotland cruised to a 4-0 friendly victory over Bolivia. “We picked up one or two niggles last week and decided it wasn’t worth the risk,” he said.
Reactions from Norwegian Camp
The sudden cancellation has drawn sharp rebukes from senior Norwegian figures and players, including striker Alexander Sorloth, who called the decision “a great shame and quite unprofessional.” Norway will open their World Cup campaign against Iraq on June 16, while Scotland start against Haiti on June 14.
