# 2019 Molde FK season

The 2019 season was Molde's 12th consecutive year in Eliteserien, and their 43rd season in the top flight of Norwegian football. They participated in Eliteserien, winning the title for the 4th time, reached the third round of the Cup and were knocked out of the 2019–20 UEFA Europa League in the playoff round by FK Partizan after entering at the First qualifying round stage. Molde were scheduled to take part in the 2019 Mesterfinalen against Rosenborg, but the match was cancelled 15 March 2019 due to heavy rain.

## Season events

On 19 December 2018, Molde announced that manager Ole Gunnar Solskjær had been "loaned" to Manchester United as their caretaker manager until the end of the 2018–19 season, Erling Moe taking charge of Molde during this period. On 28 March 2019, Manchester United announced the permanent appointment of Solskjær as their manager. On 16 June, in Molde's won 2–0 home win against Ranheim, the club scored for a 29th consecutive league games, breaking the club record of scoring in 28 consecutive league matches from the 2014 season. Molde were eliminated from the Norwegian Cup on 19 June, after being defeated 0–4 away to Aalesund in the third round. The record goalscoring run of scoring in 40 consecutive league games ended on 6 October with a goalless draw against Brann at Brann Stadion. On 10 November 2019, Molde won the league title with two games to spare after Strømsgodset were defeated with the score 4–0.

### Norwegian Cup

Molde entered the Norwegian Cup in the first round. The first round schedule was announced on 11 April and paired Molde with fifth tier side Eide/Omegn. Molde won the match 5–0; Leke James opened the scoring in the 10th minute, and Eirik Ulland Andersen scored Molde's second goal. James scored his second, Molde's third, and Ulland Andersen completed his first hat-trick for Molde with two goals in the second half, the first from the penalty spot. Late in the game, Ulland Andersen was removed from the pitch with an injury to his Achilles tendon, which possibly rules him out for the rest of the season. Goalkeeper Álex Craninx and midfielder Emil Breivik (substitute) got their debut for the club against Eide/Omegn. On 6 May, it was announced that Sunndal from 3. divisjon, whom they last met in the first round seven seasons earlier, when they won 4–0, were Molde's opponent in the second round. The result was the same on this occasion; Christoffer Remmer scored his first goal in his senior career early in the game, before James scored his third goal of the Norwegian Cup season. 17-year-old winger Jakob Ørsahl made his Molde debut and scored both the third and fourth goal. Under–19 players Tobias Hestad, Markus Eiane and Oliver Petersen were all brought on to their club debut in the second half. NFF paired Molde with local rivals Aalesund in the third round. On 19 June, Molde were knocked out of the Norwegian Cup after a 0–4 defeat away to second tier side Aalesund. Molde's captain Ruben Gabrielsen was sent off about half an hour into the game on the score 0–2.

## Squad

    As of match played 1 December 2019
| No. | Name | Position | Date of birth (Age) | Signed from | Signed in | Contract ends | Apps. | Goals |
| Goalkeepers ||||||||||
| 1 | Andreas Linde | GK | (1993-07-24)24 July 1993 (aged 26) | Helsingborg | 2015 | 2021 | 105 | 0 |
| 12 | Álex Craninx | GK | (1995-10-21)21 October 1995 (aged 24) | Cartagena | 2018 | 2023 | 25 | 0 |
| 26 | Mathias Ranmark | GK | (1995-10-16)16 October 1995 (aged 24) | Oppsal | 2017 | 2021 | 3 | 0 |
| 52 | Oliver Petersen | GK | (2001-09-26)26 September 2001 (aged 18) | Academy | 2019 | | 1 | 0 |
| Defenders ||||||||||
| 2 | Martin Bjørnbak | DF | (1992-03-22)22 March 1992 (aged 27) | Bodø/Glimt | 2019 | 2022 | 33 | 0 |
| 4 | Ruben Gabrielsen | DF | (1992-03-10)10 March 1992 (aged 27) | Lillestrøm | 2014 | 2019 | 171 | 8 |
| 5 | Vegard Forren | DF | (1988-02-16)16 February 1988 (aged 31) | Brighton & Hove Albion | 2017 | 2021 | 384 | 18 |
| 18 | Kristoffer Haraldseid | DF | (1994-01-17)17 January 1994 (aged 25) | Haugesund | 2019 | 2022 | 36 | 1 |
| 28 | Kristoffer Haugen | DF | (1994-02-21)21 February 1994 (aged 25) | Viking | 2018 | 2020 | 61 | 2 |
| Midfielders ||||||||||
| 7 | Magnus Wolff Eikrem | MF | (1990-08-08)8 August 1990 (aged 29) | Seattle Sounders FC | 2018 | 2022 | 139 | 28 |
| 8 | Fredrik Sjølstad | MF | (1994-03-29)29 March 1994 (aged 25) | Kongsvinger | 2019 | 2021 | 21 | 1 |
| 9 | Mattias Moström | MF | (1983-02-25)25 February 1983 (aged 36) | AIK | 2007 | 2019 | 357 | 36 |
| 11 | Martin Ellingsen | MF | (1995-05-02)2 May 1995 (aged 24) | Kongsvinger | 2017 | 2022 | 45 | 7 |
| 15 | Tobias Christensen | MF | (2000-05-11)11 May 2000 (aged 19) | Start | 2019 | 2022 | 6 | 1 |
| 16 | Etzaz Hussain | MF | (1993-01-27)27 January 1993 (aged 26) | Rudeš | 2017 | 2019 | 194 | 21 |
| 17 | Fredrik Aursnes | MF | (1995-12-10)10 December 1995 (aged 23) | Hødd | 2016 | 2021 | 133 | 16 |
| 19 | Eirik Hestad | MF | (1995-06-26)26 June 1995 (aged 24) | Academy | 2012 | 2021 | 169 | 27 |
| 20 | Henry Wingo | MF | (1995-10-04)4 October 1995 (aged 24) | Seattle Sounders FC | 2019 | 2021 | 3 | 0 |
| 23 | Eirik Ulland Andersen | MF | (1992-09-21)21 September 1992 (aged 27) | Strømsgodset | 2019 | 2022 | 6 | 4 |
| 30 | Mathis Bolly | MF | (1990-11-14)14 November 1990 (aged 29) | Free agent | 2019 | 2022 | 19 | 5 |
| 46 | Tobias Hestad | MF | (2000-12-29)29 December 2000 (aged 18) | Academy | | 2020 | 1 | 0 |
| 50 | Jakob Ørsahl | MF | (2001-07-14)14 July 2001 (aged 18) | Academy | | | 1 | 2 |
| Forwards ||||||||||
| 10 | Leke James | FW | (1992-11-01)1 November 1992 (aged 27) | Free agent | 2018 | 2020 | 52 | 28 |
| 14 | Erling Knudtzon | FW | (1988-12-15)15 December 1988 (aged 30) | Lillestrøm | 2019 | 2021 | 29 | 4 |
| 48 | Markus Eiane | FW | (2001-03-23)23 March 2001 (aged 18) | Academy | | | 1 | 0 |
| 99 | Ohi Omoijuanfo | FW | (1994-01-10)10 January 1994 (aged 25) | Stabæk | 2019 | 2021 | 35 | 16 |
| Out on loan ||||||||||
| 6 | Stian Rode Gregersen | DF | (1995-05-17)17 May 1995 (aged 24) | Academy | 2013 | 2020 | 56 | 1 |
| 21 | Tobias Svendsen | MF | (1999-08-31)31 August 1999 (aged 20) | Academy | 2015 | 2020 | 23 | 1 |
| 25 | Martin Ove Roseth | DF | (1998-07-10)10 July 1998 (aged 21) | Academy | 2016 | 2021 | 3 | 0 |
| 27 | Daniel Chima Chukwu | FW | (1991-04-04)4 April 1991 (aged 28) | Legia Warszawa | 2018 | 2020 | 163 | 56 |
| 45 | Emil Breivik | DF | (2000-06-11)11 June 2000 (aged 19) | Academy | | 2022 | 3 | 0 |
| 49 | Sivert Gussiås | FW | (1999-08-18)18 August 1999 (aged 20) | Academy | 2018 | 2019 | 1 | 0 |
| Players who left club during season ||||||||||
| 3 | Christopher Telo | DF | (1989-11-04)4 November 1989 (aged 30) | IFK Norrköping | 2017 | 2020 | 10 | 0 |
| 20 | Thomas Amang | FW | (1998-02-09)9 February 1998 (aged 21) | Rainbow Bamenda | 2016 | 2020 | 50 | 11 |
| 22 | Christoffer Remmer | DF | (1993-01-16)16 January 1993 (aged 26) | Copenhagen | 2016 | 2019 | 81 | 1 |

## Transfers
### In

| Date | Position | Name | From | Fee |
| 1 January 2019† | MF | Erling Knudtzon | Lillestrøm | Free |
| 8 January 2019 | MF | Fredrik Sjølstad | Kongsvinger | Undisclosed |
| 16 January 2019 | MF | Eirik Ulland Andersen | Strømsgodset | Undisclosed |
| 17 January 2019 | DF | Martin Bjørnbak | Bodø/Glimt | Undisclosed |
| 2 February 2019 | DF | Kristoffer Haraldseid | Haugesund | Undisclosed |
| 19 February 2019 | MF | Mathis Bolly | Free agent | Free |
| 21 March 2019 | FW | Ohi Omoijuanfo | Stabæk | Undisclosed |
| 10 August 2019 | MF | Tobias Christensen | Start | Undisclosed |
| 12 August 2019 | MF | Henry Wingo | Seattle Sounders FC | Undisclosed |
    † Knudtzon's move was announced on 17 July 2018 and finalised on 1 January 2019.

### Out

| Date | Position | Name | To | Fee |
| 4 December 2018 | MF | Ibrahima Wadji | Haugesund | Undisclosed |
| 15 December 2018 | FW | Óttar Magnús Karlsson | Mjällby | Undisclosed |
| 1 January 2019 | MF | Hermann Svendsen | Træff | Undisclosed |
| 1 January 2019† | FW | Erling Haaland | Red Bull Salzburg | Undisclosed |
| 11 January 2019 | FW | Fredrik Brustad | Mjøndalen | Undisclosed |
| 25 January 2019 | DF | Elias Mordal | Brattvåg | Undisclosed |
| 1 February 2019 | DF | Sonni Nattestad | Fredericia | Undisclosed |
| 18 March 2019 | FW | Christian Dahl | Moss | Undisclosed |
| 31 July 2019 | DF | Thor-Olav Moe | Åsane | Undisclosed |
| 9 August 2019 | FW | Magnus Langset | Notodden | Undisclosed |
| 26 August 2019 | FW | Thomas Amang | Gimnàstic | Undisclosed |
    † Haaland's move was announced on 18 August 2018 and finalised on 1 January 2019.
* ↑ Fee reported as NOK 100 million

### Loans out

| Date from | Position | Name | to | Date to |
| 31 August 2018 | FW | Fredrik Brustad | Hamilton Academical | 10 January 2019 |
| 22 December 2018 | FW | Sivert Gussiås | Strømmen | 31 December 2019 |
| 16 January 2019 | MF | Tobias Svendsen | Sandefjord | 6 July 2019 |
| 16 February 2019 | DF | Stian Rode Gregersen | Elfsborg | 31 December 2019 |
| 18 February 2019 | FW | Daniel Chima Chukwu | Heilongjiang Lava Spring | 31 December 2019 |
| 24 March 2019 | FW | Thomas Amang | Kristiansund | 26 August 2019 |
| 28 March 2019 | GK | Mathias Ranmark | Mjøndalen | 5 August 2019 |
| 3 May 2019 | DF | Martin Ove Roseth | Sogndal | 31 July 2019 |
| 2 August 2019 | MF | Tobias Hestad | Asker | End of Season |
| 20 August 2019 | DF | Emil Breivik | Raufoss | 31 December 2019 |
| 9 September 2019 | DF | Martin Ove Roseth | Sogndal | 31 December 2019 |
| 9 September 2019 | MF | Tobias Svendsen | Nest-Sotra | 31 December 2019 |

### Released

| Date | Position | Name | Joined | Date |
| 30 November 2018 | DF | Isak Ssewankambo | Östersund | 21 February 2019 |
| 31 December 2018 | MF | Petter Strand | Brann | 12 January 2019 |
| 18 January 2019 | MF | Babacar Sarr | Yenisey Krasnoyarsk | 5 February 2019 |
| 30 June 2019 | DF | Christoffer Remmer | Westerlo | 16 July 2019 |
| 26 July 2019 | DF | Christopher Telo | IFK Norrköping | 27 July 2019 |

## Competitions
### Mesterfinalen
### Eliteserien
#### Results summary

| Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Home | Home | Home | Home | Home | Home | Away | Away | Away | Away | Away | Away |
Last updated: 1 December 2019. Source: see below

#### Results by match

| Match | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 |
| Ground | A | H | H | A | A | H | A | H | A | H | A | H | A | H | A | H | A | A | H | A | H | A | H | A | H | A | H | H | A | H |
| Result | D | W | W | L | W | W | W | W | L | W | L | W | W | D | D | W | W | W | D | W | W | W | W | D | W | L | W | W | W | W |
| Position | 7 | 3 | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |

#### Table

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
| 1 | Molde (C) | 30 | 21 | 5 | 4 | 72 | 31 | +41 | 68 | Qualification for the Champions League first qualifying round |
| 2 | Bodø/Glimt | 30 | 15 | 9 | 6 | 64 | 44 | +20 | 54 | Qualification for the Europa League first qualifying round |
| 3 | Rosenborg | 30 | 14 | 10 | 6 | 53 | 41 | +12 | 52 | Qualification for the Europa League first qualifying round |
| 4 | Odd | 30 | 15 | 7 | 8 | 45 | 40 | +5 | 52 | |
| 5 | Viking | 30 | 13 | 8 | 9 | 55 | 42 | +13 | 47 | Qualification for the Europa League second qualifying round |
* ↑ Viking qualified for the Europa League second qualifying round as winners of the 2019 Norwegian Cup.

### Europa League
#### Qualifying rounds
## Squad statistics

    As of match played 1 December 2019

### Appearances and goals

| No. | Pos | Nat | Player | Total | Total | Eliteserien | Eliteserien | Norwegian Cup | Norwegian Cup | Europa League | Europa League |
| No. | Pos | Nat | Player | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| 1 | GK | SWE | Andreas Linde | 16 | 0 | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2 | DF | NOR | Martin Bjørnbak | 33 | 0 | 25+1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 0 |
| 4 | DF | NOR | Ruben Gabrielsen | 33 | 2 | 25+1 | 2 | 1+1 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| 5 | DF | NOR | Vegard Forren | 29 | 1 | 16+3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 6+1 | 1 |
| 7 | MF | NOR | Magnus Wolff Eikrem | 33 | 13 | 20+5 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 2 |
| 8 | MF | NOR | Fredrik Sjølstad | 21 | 1 | 7+9 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0+2 | 0 |
| 9 | MF | SWE | Mattias Moström | 27 | 2 | 7+13 | 2 | 2+1 | 0 | 1+3 | 0 |
| 10 | FW | NGA | Leke James | 38 | 24 | 16+12 | 17 | 2 | 3 | 7+1 | 4 |
| 11 | MF | NOR | Martin Ellingsen | 32 | 4 | 22+4 | 3 | 0+1 | 0 | 1+4 | 1 |
| 12 | GK | BEL | Álex Craninx | 25 | 0 | 14 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 8 | 0 |
| 14 | FW | NOR | Erling Knudtzon | 29 | 4 | 13+7 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 2+5 | 1 |
| 15 | MF | NOR | Tobias Christensen | 6 | 1 | 2+4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 16 | MF | NOR | Etzaz Hussain | 26 | 5 | 11+5 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 8 | 1 |
| 17 | MF | NOR | Fredrik Aursnes | 39 | 2 | 30 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 8 | 1 |
| 18 | DF | NOR | Kristoffer Haraldseid | 36 | 1 | 27+1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 |
| 19 | MF | NOR | Eirik Hestad | 38 | 5 | 24+4 | 4 | 1+1 | 0 | 7+1 | 1 |
| 20 | MF | USA | Henry Wingo | 3 | 0 | 0+3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 23 | MF | NOR | Eirik Ulland Andersen | 6 | 4 | 3+2 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 28 | DF | NOR | Kristoffer Haugen | 27 | 0 | 20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 |
| 30 | MF | CIV | Mathis Bolly | 19 | 5 | 5+8 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1+5 | 2 |
| 46 | MF | NOR | Tobias Hestad | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 48 | FW | NOR | Markus Eiane | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 50 | MF | NOR | Jakob Ørsahl | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 52 | GK | NOR | Oliver Petersen | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 99 | FW | NOR | Ohi Omoijuanfo | 35 | 17 | 24+3 | 15 | 1 | 0 | 5+2 | 2 |
| Players away from Molde on loan: ||||||||||||
| 25 | DF | NOR | Martin Ove Roseth | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 45 | DF | NOR | Emil Breivik | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1+2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Players who appeared for Molde no longer at the club: ||||||||||||
| 3 | DF | SWE | Christopher Telo | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 22 | DF | DEN | Christoffer Remmer | 6 | 1 | 2+1 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 |

### Goalscorers

| Rank | Pos. | No. | Nat. | Player | Eliteserien | Norwegian Cup | Europa League | Total |
| 1 | FW | 10 | | Leke James | 17 | 3 | 4 | 24 |
| 2 | FW | 99 | | Ohi Omoijuanfo | 15 | 0 | 2 | 17 |
| 3 | MF | 7 | | Magnus Wolff Eikrem | 11 | 0 | 2 | 13 |
| 4 | MF | 19 | | Eirik Hestad | 4 | 0 | 1 | 5 |
| 4 | MF | 16 | | Etzaz Hussain | 4 | 0 | 1 | 5 |
| 4 | MF | 30 | | Mathis Bolly | 3 | 0 | 2 | 5 |
| 7 | FW | 14 | | Erling Knudtzon | 3 | 0 | 1 | 4 |
| 7 | MF | 23 | | Eirik Ulland Andersen | 1 | 3 | 0 | 4 |
| 9 | MF | 11 | | Martin Ellingsen | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| 10 | DF | 4 | | Ruben Gabrielsen | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 10 | MF | 9 | | Mattias Moström | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 10 | MF | 17 | | Fredrik Aursnes | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| 10 | FW | 50 | | Jakob Ørsahl | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| 14 | DF | 18 | | Kristoffer Haraldseid | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 14 | MF | 8 | | Fredrik Sjølstad | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 14 | MF | 15 | | Tobias Christensen | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 14 | DF | 22 | | Christoffer Remmer | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 14 | MF | 11 | | Martin Ellingsen | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 14 | DF | 5 | | Vegard Forren | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| | | | | Own goals | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| TOTALS | TOTALS | TOTALS | TOTALS | TOTALS | 72 | 9 | 16 | 97 |

### Clean sheets

| Rank | Pos. | No. | Nat. | Player | Eliteserien | Norwegian Cup | Europa League | Total |
| 1 | GK | 12 | | Álex Craninx | 4 | 2 | 3 | 9 |
| 2 | GK | 1 | | Andreas Linde | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| TOTALS | TOTALS | TOTALS | TOTALS | TOTALS | 11 | 2 | 3 | 16 |

### Disciplinary record

| No. | Pos. | Nat. | Name | Eliteserien | Eliteserien | Norwegian Cup | Norwegian Cup | Europa League | Europa League | Total | Total |
| 1 | GK | | Andreas Linde | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 2 | DF | | Martin Bjørnbak | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| 4 | DF | | Ruben Gabrielsen | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1 |
| 5 | DF | | Vegard Forren | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 7 | 0 |
| 7 | MF | | Magnus Wolff Eikrem | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 0 |
| 8 | MF | | Fredrik Sjølstad | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| 9 | MF | | Mattias Moström | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| 10 | FW | | Leke James | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| 11 | MF | | Martin Ellingsen | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| 12 | GK | | Álex Craninx | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 14 | FW | | Erling Knudtzon | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| 15 | MF | | Tobias Christensen | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 16 | MF | | Etzaz Hussain | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| 17 | MF | | Fredrik Aursnes | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 0 |
| 18 | DF | | Kristoffer Haraldseid | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 19 | MF | | Eirik Hestad | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 7 | 0 |
| 28 | DF | | Kristoffer Haugen | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| 30 | MF | | Mathis Bolly | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 99 | FW | | Ohi Omoijuanfo | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 1 |
| Players away from Molde on loan: ||||||||||||
| 45 | DF | | Emil Breivik | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Players who appeared for Molde no longer at the club: ||||||||||||
| TOTALS | TOTALS | TOTALS | TOTALS | 55 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 18 | 0 | 77 | 2 |