Johnsen ready to frustrate Raúl

By Kevin Ashby in Oslo

Were it not for the brilliance of goalkeeper Espen Johnsen, Norway would be preparing for tonight's UEFA EURO 2004™ play-off against Spain with little more than pride to play for. Instead, a 2-1 first leg deficit leaves the tie balanced and gives Johnsen another chance to defy the striker he rates as the best in the world, Raúl González.

Refreshingly modest
Raúl's glancing header may have beaten Johnsen in the 21st minute of Saturday's match in Valencia, yet the Real Madrid CF man was left bamboozled as to how he had failed to add to his record haul of goals for Spain. Johnsen played, what he called, the game of his life. Speaking to uefa.com at Norway's base in the Oslo suburb of Fornebu, the Rosenborg BK player was refreshingly modest about being the centre of attention. "I don't think too much about it," he said. "It was good to perform to my best."

Late saves
Asked which was the most pleasing of a dazzling array of saves, Johnsen cited a routine stop which saw him race off his line to "collect the ball easily" after Raúl attempted to chip him. The "most difficult", though, was a double-save from the forward in the dying moments which prevented Spain increasing a lead not long established after Henning Berg had deflected a Rubén Baraja shot past Johnsen.

'The best'
Rather than swap his shirt with one of the central defenders who marked him, Raúl made straight for Johnsen at full time at the Mestalla stadium to further brighten his star in the eyes of the goalkeeper. "He is the best player I have ever met or seen," said the custodian. "I was very impressed with him." While Johnsen spoke glowingly of Raúl, the 23-year-old's team-mates were united in praise for their No1.

'Enormous pressure'
Right-back Christer Basma, Johnsen's team-mate at Norwegian champions Rosenborg, told uefa.com: "Spain put us under enormous pressure but thanks to the excellence of our goalkeeper the score was just 2-1." Steffen Iversen, scorer of Norway's 14th-minute first leg goal, added: "We did well in Spain and even though they had a lot of chances we had a goalkeeper who played at the top of his game and also scored an away goal. It's up to us now to win the game in Oslo."

Relaxed squad
A combination of Johnsen's safe hands and Iversen's strike has left the Norwegian squad in relaxed mood ahead of Wednesday's sell-out at the Ullevål stadion. Centre-forward Tore André Flo, who will again plough a lone furrow at the tip of a 4-5-1 system, feels the strain is on Spain, saying: "We don't have much pressure on us, most of it is on the other side. We want to prove we are good enough to qualify, so we are very determined."

Wintry conditions
The Norway players were also hopeful that 'outside' factors would play a part after snow fell on Oslo for much of yesterday morning. "It's winter here and there's not much snow in Spain, so maybe that's an advantage for us," said Flo, while Iversen concluded: "The weather's bad, there's snow around the pitch and it's very cold so hopefully that will make them regret coming here a bit and help us."