“It might be right, but I guess that there never is a great pressure on a young player, as people don’t know what to expect from a new young player. I knew that I had to impress so that added some pressure, but there was a lot of focus on Kusk and he deserves it,” Thomsen says,

“Before the season started, I didn’t expect to be playing in every single match of the season, but I’m very happy that I have and I feel I’ve become better and better.”

“It has been perfect for me, as I came as a rookie in the professional environment and got to train with some guys who really wanted to get something out of their career and had the ambitions. I always believed in myself, but I had to work hard to get where I am, and my teammates and coaches have always helped me to develop,” Thomsen says.

“Even though we tell that we don’t have any focus on the interest from other clubs, sometimes you can’t help thinking about what the future brings. But, at the moment I haven’t had time to think about it because we are going through an exciting time.

“I hope we will play in the Champions League next year, so I am staying in AaB for at least a couple of years," the talent says.

“It is fantastic that we have a chance of becoming the champions, and I think it is good for a young player to have this experience as it adds pressure. Before the season, we were expected to be a part of the relegation battle, but we surprised everyone. I believe it is healthy for a young player to play in such a big club and experience the pressure that follows.”

“This is the year, and only a few of us have been in a cup final, so I don’t think it plays a role. I believe we all go into this match as it was any other match, and then I hope we are the winners after 90 minutes.”

He is a product of one of the many satellite clubs of Aalborg BK and have been compared to Wayne Rooney; his name is Rolf Toft and he is one of Aalborg's talented strikers.

"It went fast from playing on the 2nd team [Youth] in Hjørring to play for the 1st team and then suddenly be on my way to Aalborg, but it was nice that they were interested in me,” Toft says and reflects on what made him interesting for the Superliga team:

“I did well, and the sports director in Hjørring had a past in Aalborg so I believe they talked about me, at least that is what I heard.”

”It is always good to play some different positions and I can play on the wing, but I would rather be up in front," the striker says.

“It wasn’t in the cards that I would get much match time, and with a Rasmus Jönsson on his way back from his injury, I wanted to get some more experience and time on the pitch.”

“It was a good place to be and the teammates were great, but I came for playing on a high level and didn’t get much time on the pitch,” Toft says about his short spell in Vejle. 

“I fight for the every minute I can get, and then we will have to see during the summer if I am to leave Aalborg or I will get more time on the pitch.”  

“It is good to see that the players from Aalborg can move on to bigger clubs, and at the same time it is nice to play with some players on your own age, whom you have a bit more in common with than the older players,” he says.

"Either it is Aalborg or somewhere else permanently, but I want to play in Aalborg more than anywhere else,” the talent ensures the fans before preparing for the next days training.

"He has been fighting for five-six-seven years, where he often was a reserve. It is a long time to be less physical, slower than the others and a head lower. It is well done, and a great part of the reason why we are so happy to see him make a breakthrough."

“During my youth time wasn’t between the ten of eleven best players in the club, so I was forced to train extra and train by myself to develop some of the skills I was missing. It meant that I had to spend some extra time on the training ground, and it wasn’t the best time of my life, but I believe it has strengthened me and helped me work harder."

"You learn when sometimes things doesn’t go your way, and there is no doubt I would have loved to score goals last spring, but it wasn’t to be. I think most footballers experience an up and down period, and I have learned from it.”

“We play well and we have some young players performing on a high level, but there is no doubt there will come some qualified teams from behind who wants to be a part of the top, so we are not the favorites.

“We will do what we can, but there will be hard matches and we will have our problems," Kusk says.

“The most important is to play well for your club, and then grab the chance when you get it for the national team," Kusk says.

“I feel good in Aalborg, and have been in Aalborg my entire life so I could see myself staying here for longer. That said, if the right offer come from an interesting club, then I will consider it.

"But I feel good in Aalborg and it will be interesting to see how far this team can go,” the starlet ends the interview.

“We have always had a tremendous unity on the teams I have played for, and by looking at the senior squad, you can see that they are willing to use many of the young players, which is nice," says Blåbjerg about his youth time in Aalborg.

“Jakob have trough his presentations here in U17 and U19 teams, and through his many youth national matches shown that he is a talented player, but the hardest step is to go from youth to senior football.”

“I did know until 30 minutes before the match started. Mentally I hard warmed up as a substitute, and did expect to play as it is rare you make changes in the back four doing a match.

During the warm up I am playing some small games with the rest of the reserves when I am  that he [Lasse Nielsen] is injured. We are three players beginning to warm up when Kent [Nielsen] approaches me and asks if I am nervous about playing, and I told him that I felt ready. Then you start he said."

“The primary development happens in your club, so it is something extra to be part of a national team and represent your country. Especially when we play qualification matches and matches where there are points at risk. Furthermore, it gives you some international routine even though it is only on a youth level," he says.

Rather than playing for the reserves in Aalborg, this young player tries to reinvent his career in the Danish 2. Division. This week, we keep an eye on Jammerbugt FC's Daniel Moth.

“The ambitions and dreams of playing football on a higher level than just with the mates, made me join Aalborg," Moth says.

“We always keep an eye on what is happening in Aalborg BK, and had seen Daniel a couple of times and found he was a good player. What we noticed was that he is calm with the ball and have a view for finding his teammates and willing to make the runs needed. That he is not afraid of keeping the ball and his running abilities is some of his best features," Bo Zink says.

"First of all; a player like Daniel intensives our training level, and secondly we want to keep the ball and Daniel is an important player for our playing style. He is a motor on the central midfield and a good player, which you don’t find every day."

"Moth works hard and is a humble player. He understands if he is between the subs instead of playing, and he is willing to work harder to get back on the team. He is a good guy, but misses some temper at times, but as he is only 21-years-old he has the future in front of him," Zink says.

Both Aalborg Boldspilklub and Aston Villa have confirmed the transfer of Danish striker Nicklas Helenius.

Striker Nicklas Helenius, 22, becomes the second Dane to join Aston Villa this summer as the club completes an estimated £1.2m deal with Aalborg Boldspilklub.

Last season Helenius scored 16 goals in 33 caps in the Danish Superliga and was recognised by UEFA as Danish Superliga player of the season in 2012-13.

Despite the success, the Dane did not expect a transfer to the Premier League this early in his career he admitted to the Aston Villa website:

"I thought that maybe when I was 28 or something I might eventually be able to move to the Premier League having made my mark in Danish football but now I have my chance and I think this is the right club for me with all the other young players in the side who want to do well and achieve something together."

Nicklas Helenius has signed a contract lasting for the next three years.

Nicklas Helenius might be lost for Aalborg as Aston Villa has made an offer on the club's topscorer. The striker has announced that it is time for him to try something new, and as his has only one year left of his contract, the club has opened for a transfer. 

Helenius was the man behind 14 goals in the 2011/12 Danish Superliga, followed up by 16 in the last season. So far he has played 102 matches and scored 40 goals for Aalborg where he has played his entire career. 

Neither Aston Villa or Aalborg has commented further on the transfer. Great Dane Football Blog will keep you updated on the latest on the Helenius transfer as well as other Danish talents during the summer. Meanwhile, you can read GDFB's profile of the soon-to-be Aston Villa strike here!

The short hair and the fit buddy will all the tattoos – not the typical Aalborg BK defender -  made some of Aalborg BK’s senior fans raise an eyebrow when their beloved club signed this talent. This week we keep an eye on Rasmus Thelander.

Despite the tough appearance, Thelander ensures the Aalborg fans that if they got to know him they would understand that he is not a big bully. However, the tough attitude might have played a role when the defender was sent off in his debut for the Danish U18 national team against Ukraine. The Danish team was standing very deep when a cross was sent into the box. As Thelander turned one of the Ukrainian striker was suddenly in front of him, and despite Thelander’s try to stop the striker fell.

Thelander joined Aalborg on a free transfer in the summer 2012, but before that the defender went through quite a transfer saga. The defender started playing football in Herlev before he joined Akademisk Boldklub in the Danish 1. Division, where he became one of the players that should help the club in a rather difficult time.

After playing his way into the AB team, suddenly the Dutch Eredivisie club Roda JC was interested. Thelander was invited on a week’s trial, but already on the second day the Dutch’s decided to keep him for four extra days. The trial went more than well as the club decided to make an offer for Thelander after he scored a goal dribbling from one end to the other.

After a month of negotiating, the only thing missing was the medical check. However, before it would happen Roda had changed their manager and the deal ran out in the sand.

Instead, it was Aalborg that became Thelander’s new club. According to the defender, AaB’s manager Kent Nielsen had contacted him several times within the last couple of weeks of his contract and expressed that he wanted him to join Aalborg.  Kent Nielsen says about his decision to bring Thelander to Aalborg:

While Thelander made 43 appearances for AB, he has so far only gotten 9 matches for Aalborg. However, the manager has an explanation for the lack of matches.

Due to injuries and bans Thelander was set to play in the three first matches of the spring season, but for the first time in his Aalborg career Thelander became injured himself. However, the talented defender is ready to wait for his chance and is hoping that it will one day take him abroad and add some national matches to his c.v.

Doping has been a part of the cycling world for years; first it was'nt mentioned but now it is one of the hottest topics. The same matters for match fixing; it has been a part of football for years, but now we are putting focus on the problem.

It has been there for years, but the first time I heard about match fixing was in 1995. My local team in Denmark, Aalborg BK, had played and lost against Dinamo Kiev in the Champions League Qualification. However, it was revealed that Dinamo had tried to bribe the referee with two fur coats and an unknown amount of money. Aalborg, therefore, took their spot in the ChL.

Today, the match fixing is much more than two fur coats and some money. Today we are talking about a million-industry and led by crime syndicates. Europol yesterday announced that they believe 680 matches in 13 countries has been arranged by an Asian crime syndicate.

Europol is now taking action against the players, officials, referees ect. who has taken part in this incident, but  does this mean that we have seen the last of match fixing? Probably not; match fixing is here to stay.

Where there is money, there will always be cheating. As long as some players can't say no to the satisfaction of earning extra money, match fixing will exist. What can we do then? Ban all gambling on football matches? Definately not! As much as you like it or not, gambling is a part of the sport and is not something we can just get rid off.

What we could do, is to punish the sinners even harder than we do now, not only by exclusion and fines but with prison, as well. In cycling,  they took Lance Armstrong's wins in the Tour de France. In football,  we can't punish in the same way.

Despite harder penalties, match fixing will probably always be a part of the football world, as much as doping will be a part of cycling. At the moment, it is hard to see what the authorities can do to prevent further scandals in the future.

Now, go make a bet on a fixed match!

He is 21-years old, first choice in Aalborg BK and last night he played his match number 50 in the Danish Superliga; this week we keep an eye on Nicolai Larsen.

The goalkeeper started his youth career in Herlev IF, before joining Lyngby BK in 2005. Here, he has a spell on the youth teams which also led to interest from a couple of English clubs:

"As a junior I was at a trial in Tottenham, [Aston] Villa and Portsmouth, and it was just an experience to try out for some of the big teams."

Larsen also had a tryout in Everton in 2009, and was invited to play a match for the reserves. A contract seemed near, but in the last minute Everton pulled out. Instead, Larsen in 2010 joined Aalborg BK as a reserve to their goalkeeper Karim Zaza.

Nicolai Larsen was brought to Aalborg as a reserve, and was supposed to learn from Karim Zaza. However, after a year Zaza did not get his contract extended, and Larsen took over as the number one. Aalborg coach Kent Nielsen says:

However, the situation changed, and Kent Nielsen gave Larsen the chance:

Nicolai Larsen took the up the challenge and yesterday played his match number 50 for Aalborg. Nicolai Larsen and his teammates has surprised everyone this season and is currently three in the Danish League, and the goal keeper is hoping for more:

However, someday Larsen himself might leave Aalborg and England is a target for the goalkeeper:

Aalborg coach Kent Nielsen is aware of the goalkeepers talent, but will not hold him back if a club should make an offer. It is a part of the game according to Nielsen.

Nicolai Larsen has so far played 37 matches on different Danish national youth teams, but is currently second choice for Frederik Rønnow on the Danish U21. However, the dream of representing Denmark on A-level is still there:

However, the Aalborg keeper knows that he have to deliver great performances for his club, in order to impress the Danish national coach. Right now the club is Aalborg where his contract expires in 2015.

 

At the age, of 15 Mathias Wichmann became the youngest player who has signed a contract with Aalborg BK. Back then, the directors of Aalborg feared to lose the player as clubs as Herenveen, Charlton, Werder Bremen and league rivals FC Midtjylland has announced their interest. According to Aalborg coach, Kent Nielsen Wichmann is one of the greatest talents in the squad:

“Mathias Wichmann is a young, creative and technical player and one of the best in the squad to keep a flow in the game and find the passing in some difficult situations.”

After haven trained with the first team squad for six months, the 18-year old midfielder announced to the local paper that his ambitions were to play regular on the best team in Aalborg. Injuries in the squad gave Wichmann the chance to show what he was capable of, and the young playmaker made his breakthrough. However, 2011 the former captain of Aalborg Thomas Agustinussen joined the team once again and Wichmann lost his position on the central midfield. The gifted player said:

"I have played a lot for the first team, so you might say that I succeeded. However, I am not playing regular yet but am hoping for it in the future."

When Augustinussen returned to Aalborg, Wichmann was used on the right wing for a time. Coach Kent Nielsen is happy to have Wichmann as a central midfielder, as well as a right wing; however the player himself is most happy to play on the central midfield as he feels that it is the best position for him to “contribute to the offensive play”.

Wichmann is not an unknown name on the Danish national youth teams, with more than ten matches in the red shirt. And according to the player the ambition is to bring more caps to the statistic:

"It is a dream to play for your national team, but to get there you has to play for your club team and do it well."

Wichmann has only played ten minutes in the first four matches of this season. A situation that does not fit the talent, who will “do the best to be a part of the starting XI”. However, earlier this year, Wichmann announced that if did not get more games he would have to leave the club. However, when Great Dane Football Blog asked about the current situation the midfielder said it was something he had to discuss with his agent, but that he was more than happy to play in Aalborg. Kent Nielsen’s recipe to Wichmann is clear:

“Wichmann has to train hard and do well on the training ground, which he does; he has a really great discipline. He has to show his strength in the reserves matches as well as when we get bans or injuries.”

At the same time, the coach insures that Wichmann and his qualities are going to be important for the team sooner or later.

Even though the Aalborg player earlier in his career rejected a move to Hereenveen, Charlton and Werder Bremen a career in a foreign country is still a dream. If he can chose himself, Manchester United would be the club for him, simply because he has always been a fan.

Keep an eye on: Nicklas Helenius

               

               Age: 21 (08.05.1991)

          Position: Striker

              Club: Aalborg BK

             Debut: 16-08-2010

                    against HB Køge

International caps: Denmark U21:

                    7 match(es)

                    3 goal(s)

                    Denmark U20:

                    2 match(es)

                    1 goal(s)

             Value: £625.000

                    (transfermarkt.co.uk)

This week’s profile scored 14 goals in this season, which makes him number two on the top scorer list in Denmark. Keep an eye on Aalborg BK’s Nichlas Helenius.

The twenty-one year old striker is not unfamiliar with goals scoring, as he was top scorer for his clubs U19 team with 22 goals. The young talent is aware of his qualities:

The impressing statistic resulted in a four year contract and a promotion to the Superliga squad in 2010. While 2010 was a terrible year for AaB and their fans, Helenius had his debut against HB Køge and later scored his first goal against AC Horsens. The striker experienced personal success with 5 goals in four matches, making him the clubs top scorer in a season where they just managed to stay in the best Danish league.

The personal success was followed up by a selection for the Danish U21 team’s match against Quatar, where Helenius had his debut.

Helenius started the just ended season with a dry period of goal scoring, with almost 1000 minutes without putting the ball in the back of the net. However, this changed when he scored two goals in two matches, and goals started coming in his direction. Manager in Aalborg, describes the attackers journey as:

The German top club Dortmund was scouting the player, and Director of Sports in AaB, Lynge Jakobsen acknowledge that it could be difficult to keep the young attacker in the club. The interest did not become any smaller when Helenius was selected for the yearly national team of Superliga players, taking part in the King’s Cup in Thailand. Danish media announced that Dutch Roda had made an offer worth 5m Danish kroner (£540.000). However, this was found to be untrue.

The interest from bigger European leagues, is something that gives Helenius an extra boost, he revealed. Perhaps it was this “extra boost” he used when he scored his first hattrick, including an impressing goal, for Aalborg against Silkeborg IF, after the being behind by one, The hattrick impressed European clubs, and not only Roda and Dortmund was reported interested, but also Twente, Feyenoord and Club Brugge was watching him from the stands. Helenius acknowledge the interest but is not hesitating to go abroad:

Manager Kent Nielsen says about the interest that “Helenius is not a bigger name, than he can play in Aalborg next season as well”, but he is also aware that the player might not be in the club when the next season starts:
 

Helenius’ next assignment is the U21 friendly against Scotland. The summer will show, if Helenius will be scoring goals in Denmark next season, or if we will see him in a European top club.

Keep an eye on: Andreas Bruhn Christensen

               Age: 18 (17-02-1994)

          Position: Center Midfield

              Club: AaB (Aalborg BK),

                    Danish Superliga

             Debut: Still to come

International caps: Denmark U18: 3 Match(es)

                                 0 Goal(s)
             Value: Unknown

Andreas Bruhn, who started his career in the Danish minor club Støvring IF, joined Aalborg BKs youth department in 2008 season. The player joined the club after he had been invited to play for AaB in a cup in Germany in 2007. Here, Bruhn, scored not less than four goals in seven matches.

The talented midfielder here gives a view on his strengths and weaknesses:

Jacob Friis, Coach of the AaB U19 squad, also shared his view on the player:

In his first year at Aalborg Boldspilklub, Andreas Bruhn Christensen was invited on a trial at Liverpool FC together with two other AaB-talents: Lucas Andersen and Viktor Ahlmann Nielsen.

Bruhn Christensen had his debut on the Danish U18 national team in the 0-2 loss against Belgium, in 2011. He was also a part of the team playing in the Copa Del Atlantico in Spain where Denmark met the Spanish, and Russian U18 teams.

The international games have given the talented player a taste for more, and he has clear dreams of the future:

And Jacob Friis believes that the player can make it in another league:

Andreas Bruhn Christensen has 1½ year left of his contract in Aalborg BK, who has high believes to the player.