Fall of a dynasty heralded reign of youth

Thursday 5 July 2012

When Rosenborg take on Crusaders in the first qualifying round of the Europa League this evening, it is another small step on what will be a long and difficult path towards re-establishing some of the aura and respect that used to come with the mention of their name.

Markus Henriksen has risen to prominence with Rosenborg and has been coveted by clubs such as Celtic. Picture: AFP

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Christian Wulff

Under the leadership of arguably the greatest Norwegian coach of all time, Nils Arne Eggen, they won the league 13 years in a row from 1992 to 2004. Even more impressively, they had eight consecutive appearances in the Champions League group stages from 1995, a record which stood until Manchester United surpassed it nine years later.

Rosenborg's last Champions League appearance – and their last notable result of any kind in Europe – came in 2007, when they defeated Valencia home and away, then contributed to Jose Mourinho's departure as Chelsea manager when they drew at Stamford Bridge. But those results could not mask the fact that they was a club already in decline and one who had started to make all the wrong decisions off the field.Eggen's settled reign was replaced by a revolving door into the manager's office, creating an instability only exacerbated by a scatter-gun approach to buying new players, as if the club's deep pockets excused them from developing any sort of a coherent transfer policy.Both Celtic and Rangers also had their last notable continental achievement in the 2007/08 season. While financial dominance meant inevitable domestic success for all three clubs, the credibility and respectability these teams once commanded internationally seems consigned to a completely different era . While lack of success in Europe is the least of Rangers' problems at the moment, both Rosenborg and Celtic might now be looking to the same player to help revive their European fortunes.For all the mismanagement and poor decision-making at Rosenborg over the last few years, the one positive development is the rise of the most exciting group of young talent ever to come through their youth set-up. The leading figure of that generation is Markus Henriksen, who has been heavily linked with a move to Parkhead. Henriksen made his first-team debut in 2009, two months shy of his 17th birthday. A league champion that season, he has been a regular ever since, also gaining 10 caps for Norway. And all before he turns 20.Henriksen is the most archetypal box-to-box midfielder Norway have produced in a very long time. He does not possess one specific strength, his greatest attribute instead lying in the impressive sum of his various talents. He has a terrific engine, which combined with positional awareness and physical strength makes him dominant on the field. But there is also subtlety evident in his offensive play. His capacity to continuously commit to offensive runs, combined with a powerful right foot have enabled him to average a goal every five games for his club, a decent ratio for any central midfielder. There is a calm but determined demeanour about Henriksen, confidence coupled with a desire to learn and develop. It is this complete commitment to fulfil his inherent potential – a trait often missing in talented youngsters – that should allow him to become an integral part of Norwegian football over the next decade.Rosenborg are in danger of being eclipsed by Ole Gunnar Solskjær's Molde in the domestic league, losing their title to them last year and already struggling to challenge this season. But if Henriksen is to be kept in Norway for the next few years, regaining league supremacy is not enough.He craves the opportunity to challenge himself on a much higher level than he will encounter against Crusaders. It is doubtful if Rosenborg will be able to provide that in the foreseeable future. If Celtic want to sign Henriksen they will need to convince this very determined young man they can achieve European success together. Anything less will not suffice.

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Fall of a dynasty heralded reign of youth

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