Club Brugge starlet Antonio Nusa ‘will play’ for Premier League champions Manchester City at some point in the future, former Netherlands international Ruud Vormer tells Het Laaste Nieuws of the so-called ‘Norwegian Neymar’.
With Sweden, Denmark and even Iceland becoming regulars on the biggest of stages over the last decade or so – Finland even featured at Euro 2020 – Norway have often felt like the ‘poor relations’ of Scandinavian football.
But things are changing. In May, a Norwegian may be lifting the Premier League title, Martin Odegaard captaining an Arsenal side flying five points clear, while Erling Haaland marks his debut season in English football with the Golden Boot.
Ola Solbakken and Julian Ryerson, meanwhile, recently sealed big moves to Roma and Borussia Dortmund. And, according to Club Brugge legend Vormer, it is only a matter of time before 17-year-old whizzkid Antonio Nusa is putting pen to paper with one of Europe’s bonafide big hitters too, become the latest Norwegian talent to reach the summit of the club game.
Will Club Brugge’s ‘Norwegian Neymar’ join Erling Haaland at Manchester City?
“Just write this down; Antonio Nusa. He will later play at the biggest clubs in the world. Real Madrid, (Manchester) City. Remember my words,” Vormer says.
Nusa, last year, became the youngest ever player to score on his Champions League debut, racing in behind the Porto defence before finishing with a composure which belied his age. Nusa, with his mind-bending skill and supreme self-confidence, is not nicknamed ‘the Norwegian Neymar’ for nothing.
“Antonio is going to develop into a fantastic player,” predicts the teenager’s former Staebek coach Eirik Kjono (Goal); highlighting the dazzling ball-control which marked Nusa out as a potentially generational talent.
“It is rare to see such a good dribbler in Norway. His speed, balance and technique is something else. It will be exciting to follow his career.”
“He has a bright future ahead of him,” adds Brugges’ former Liverpool goalkeeper Simon Mignolet (Het Nieuwsblad). “In training you can see that he has an incredible amount of talent.
“We must not forget that he is only 17 years old. But he has a good head on his shoulders. He remained calm under the circumstances here, so that is already positive.”
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