Vålerenga
- Oslo’s Vålerenga IF finished mid-table in the 2025 Eliteserien, but Sandefjord, who finished an excellent fifth, will be no pushovers on Sunday as they travel to Intility Arena to take on Geir Bakke’s side.
- The home side will be keen to stamp their authority on proceedings in this opener, and their pre-season form suggests that they will not be lacking in confidence or forward momentum.
- Vålerenga are unbeaten in five warm-up games, scoring at least three times in each and hitting four in a final rehearsal against fellow Eliteserien outfit Strømsgodset.
Sandefjord
Sandefjord have scored multiple goals in five consecutive friendlies, hitting four against AaB of Denmark last time out.
Head-to-Head
- At least three goals have been scored in each of the last five head-to-head encounters.
- They have won three of the past five meetings between these clubs across all competitions and thrashed Sandefjord 5-2 in their last friendly meeting in February 2026.
Key Players
- They will have a new midfield metronome in Magnus Westergaard, who is expected to control the pace and provide structure in the centre of the park, while Ole Sæter and Mathias Grundetjern can provide a fresh attacking spark and both could be handed the scoring responsibilities this season.
- Stefán Ingi Sigurðarson does that job very effectively for Sandefjord, but the visitors will look to be hard to break down, with Evangelos Patoulidis providing the creativity and the pace of Sander Risan Mørk and Jakob Dunsby helping to drive transitions from midfield and the wings.
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Key Sandefjord names:
- Stefán Ingi Sigurðarson
- Evangelos Patoulidis
- Sander Risan Mørk
- Jakob Dunsby
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Key Sandefjord names:
Betting Insights
- The odds for Over 2.5 goals seem short enough at 1.48.
- Both Teams to Score - Yes is also a touch short at 1.42, but we think there is more of an edge in backing Vålerenga to win at 1.95 given that they are at home and have been in scintillating goal-scoring form in pre-season.
Prediction
Back the home team to nick it, but prepare for a dramatic encounter as both clubs aim to start the 2026 Eliteserien with a bang.
