Aberdeen have been urged to raid thriving Norwegian football for summer signings by former Rangers striker Tore Andre Flo.
Fuelled by a £5million Uefa jackpot after qualifying for the European group stages boss Jimmy Thelin will bolster his squad in the transfer window.
Thelin has already secured four new additions and has the backing of the Pittodrie board to move for further signings this summer.
The Swede previously turned to Norway when he signed midfielder Sivert Heltne Nilsen in a £300,000 transfer from SK Brann last summer.
‘Smart move’ for Aberdeen to look at Norway
Now manager of the Norway U16 squad, Flo has urged the Dons to look at the red-hot talent in Norway’s Eliteserien.
Capped 78 times by Norway, Flo said: “It would be a very smart move for Aberdeen to look at Norway at the moment.
“Obviously there are some very good players who have already broken through – and there are the big super-stars from Norway.
“However, they are working really well all over Norway now, which is shown with the younger national teams doing really well.
“There are lots of young, great talent coming up in Norway.”
Aberdeen have been linked with Iraq international midfielder Marko Farji of Norwegian outfit Stromsgodset.
However, the Press and Journal understands Farji is not a transfer target.
English top-flight clubs watching Norway’s players
But Flo himself is a prime example of the talent which can be sourced from Norway.
He was signed by Chelsea in 1997 from Brann for £300,000.
After three seasons with the Premier League giants, he transferred to Rangers for £12million in November 2000 – it remains the record transfer fee paid by a Scottish club.
In recent years, Norway has emerged as a hotbed for football stars, producing talents such as Manchester City’s Erling Haaland and Arsenal’s Martin Odegaard.
English top-flight clubs are closely monitoring the latest emerging talent from Norway.
Teenage striker Sindre Walle Egeli of FC Nordsjælland has been linked with Newcastle United, West Ham, Crystal Palace, Brighton and Brentford.
Although only 18, Egeli has already been capped at senior level having earned a Norway debut in friendly against Kazakhstan in September last year.
The teen – dubbed the new Erling Haaland – has scored nine goals in 34 games for his club and is reportedly valued at £25m.
Exciting teenage talent in Norway
Another 18-year-old star is Sverre Nypan, who plays as a central midfielder for Eliteserien club Rosenborg.
Nypan became the youngest ever player in Norwegian league history when starting for Rosenborg at just 15 years and 322 days old.
He was crowned Eliteserien young player of the year in both 2023 and 2024.
Manchester City are reportedly set to beat Arsenal and Aston Villa to the signing of Nypan.
Although the top rising Norwegian stars are valued at multi-millions, most of the talent in the Scandinavian nation is within Aberdeen’s budget.
Highly-rated Norway under-21 international midfielder Jens Hjertø-Dahl stars for Eliteserien club Tromsø.
Towering in at six-foot-four, Dahl made his debut at 16 and has racked up more than 50 starts.
Another highly-rated talent is Rosenborg winger Marius Broholm.
The 20-year-old made his debut at 17 years old and was a standout performer last season.
Flo said: “I now coach the under-16s for Norway and I’m very excited by that.
“They have been working hard in Norway on that (youth development) for years and we are really seeing the benefit now .
“Norway are qualifying for the Euro championships and the world championships.
“They are doing so well.”
Aberdeen boss Thelin swooped in the Norwegian market last summer when he signed Heltne Nilsen from Brann.
Flo on ‘leader’ Sivert Heltne Nilsen
Norwegian Heltne Nilsen was a key player for Thelin until he suffered a freak eye injury during a training session.
That injury ruled the midfielder out for the last three months of the season – including the Scottish Cup final win.
Heltne Nilsen is set to return to fitness for the start of pre-season.
Flo said: “I saw a lot of Sivert when he played in Norway, mainly for Brann.
“He was a controlling midfield player who kept the Brann team together.
“They did really well there and Sivert was their leader who made Brann really good.
“He was a good signing for Aberdeen last summer.”
‘The crowd were on you all the time’
During his time in Scotland, Flo scored 38 goals in 72 games for Rangers before moving to Sunderland two years later.
Flo, 51, said: “The games against Aberdeen I remember most are the away ones as it was difficult up there.
“The crowd were on you all the time and were loud, but in a good, footballing way.
“The matches up there (at Pittodrie) were high tempo, difficult and Aberdeen always fought really hard.
“It seemed like a cup final for them every time we came up and it was exciting.”
Tore Andre Flo was talking with the Press and Journal on behalf of NewBettingSites.uk
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