Bodø/Glimt lost their Champions League meeting with Napoli on Tuesday, but the Norwegian club's performance drew unusual attention in the Italian press, VG reports. Several Italian football journalists used their post-match analysis to highlight Glimt's organisation and clear playing identity, even though Napoli came away with a 4-3 win.
According to VG, the Norwegian players left the match deeply disappointed, and their reaction pointed to a shift in how the club now measures itself in Europe.
Why it matters
The commentary from Italy suggests Glimt's reputation abroad rests on more than results. Vincenzo Barretta, writing on the website Napoli Network, argued that Napoli would face no limits if it had the same level of organisation as the Bodø club, according to VG. He said Glimt at times took complete control of the game, and that only the clear gap in individual player quality allowed Napoli to win.
That framing — a losing side praised for its structure — is the thread running through much of the Italian coverage cited by VG.
"We still have no identity. They do."
Napoli journalist Paolo Del Genio, in his match analysis quoted by CalcioNapoli24, drew a direct contrast between the two clubs. He said his own team still lacks an identity, while Glimt has one, describing the Norwegian side as a team that sticks to its way of playing whatever happens in a match.
Del Genio said things went wrong for Glimt on the night but that they changed nothing, because that is how they play football. He acknowledged Napoli deserved the victory while pointing to a significant difference between the sides: he called Glimt a proper team, and said Napoli plays in fits and starts, relying on individual performances and only occasionally on organisation.
Fellow Napoli journalist Ciro Troise made a similar point. Speaking to Radio Napoli Centrale, as reported by Napolità, he described Bodø as a strong team with an identity and an organisation that always stays true to itself. On Sky Sport, he added that Glimt is good not only physically but also technically, and called the club a fantastic addition to European football in recent years.
Former Italy international Alessandro Del Piero also weighed in, describing Glimt as a side that is strong both technically and physically, according to VG.
A higher standard from the Norwegian side
The praise from Italy arrived as Glimt's own players expressed frustration rather than satisfaction. VG reports that the squad met Norwegian media after the match with clear disappointment.
Sondre Auklend told VG that the team has reached a level where it wants to get more out of these fixtures. He said keeping possession was once a reassuring thing in itself, but that the club has now reached a point where that is no longer enough. In his view, Glimt should be able to come to venues like Napoli's and take more from the game and create more.
That sentiment reflects how the club's ambitions have grown alongside its recent European record. A narrow defeat away to a major Serie A side would once have counted as a respectable result; the players now treat it as a missed opportunity.
What to watch
The Italian reaction offers a measure of how far Glimt's style of play has travelled beyond Norway. The question now is whether the team can convert that recognition into points in the remainder of the Champions League campaign, starting with its next European fixture.
