Attack Is Norway’s Best Medicine in World Cup, Says Coach Riise 

Norway's coach Hege Riise (C) speaks during a press conference with Maren Mjelde (R) and Caroline Graham Hansen in Auckland on July 19, 2023, ahead of the Women's World Cup football tournament. (AFP)
Norway's coach Hege Riise (C) speaks during a press conference with Maren Mjelde (R) and Caroline Graham Hansen in Auckland on July 19, 2023, ahead of the Women's World Cup football tournament. (AFP)
TT
20

Attack Is Norway’s Best Medicine in World Cup, Says Coach Riise 

Norway's coach Hege Riise (C) speaks during a press conference with Maren Mjelde (R) and Caroline Graham Hansen in Auckland on July 19, 2023, ahead of the Women's World Cup football tournament. (AFP)
Norway's coach Hege Riise (C) speaks during a press conference with Maren Mjelde (R) and Caroline Graham Hansen in Auckland on July 19, 2023, ahead of the Women's World Cup football tournament. (AFP)

Norway must attack Switzerland and seize the initiative if they are to claim their first victory at the Women's World Cup, after failing to live up to their potential in a shock loss to New Zealand, coach Hege Riise said on Monday.

New Zealand upset Norway in the tournament opener where the European side were overwhelming favorites against the co-hosts, who had never before won a World Cup match in 15 attempts.

The defeat left the Scandinavian side third in the group and Riise promised that group toppers Switzerland would face a "different Norway" on Tuesday compared with the disjointed team in the opener.

"We know Switzerland will be a tough game for us. Our focus is to give a better performance and realize our actual potential, which we didn't show last time," Riise told reporters.

"Attack is our best medicine. Switzerland may not be a team that frightens many others, but they have good players with individual qualities.

"We became a bit static (against New Zealand). We have talked about this, we've looked at footage and we also worked to deal with this during practice. So you will see a more collective Norway tomorrow."

Norway striker Ada Hegerberg is a force to reckon with when she plays for Olympique Lyonnais, but she has not scored in a major international tournament since 2015, partly due to her self-imposed five-year exile from the national team.

The Ballon d'Or winner has won eight league titles and six Champions League trophies, saying she still puts "a lot of pressure" on herself to perform for her country.

"My focus is solely on how can I prepare to be at my best to serve the team in the best position. I truly think about one thing and it's to win tomorrow. I'm prepared for what's to come and I learn a lot from my experience," Hegerberg said.

"I try to guide with a lot of positivity. It gets very serious in times like this and I think at some point we've got to lower the pressure a little bit, try to enjoy football because I know we can perform at a good level.

"We've got the quality to perform, so sometimes you've got to take it down a bit and try to be sound technically and rely on our strengths."

Riise also said Barcelona winger Caroline Graham Hansen is fit and available for the match after a bout of illness.



F1 Seeks to Spice up Monaco GP with More Mandatory Pitstops

Ferrari’s Monegasque driver Charles Leclerc drives during the third practice session of the Formula One Monaco Grand Prix on May 25, 2024. (AFP)
Ferrari’s Monegasque driver Charles Leclerc drives during the third practice session of the Formula One Monaco Grand Prix on May 25, 2024. (AFP)
TT
20

F1 Seeks to Spice up Monaco GP with More Mandatory Pitstops

Ferrari’s Monegasque driver Charles Leclerc drives during the third practice session of the Formula One Monaco Grand Prix on May 25, 2024. (AFP)
Ferrari’s Monegasque driver Charles Leclerc drives during the third practice session of the Formula One Monaco Grand Prix on May 25, 2024. (AFP)

Formula One's governing body is planning to spice up the showcase Monaco Grand Prix by forcing teams to carry out more pitstops.

The FIA said in a statement that an F1 commission meeting in London on Tuesday had discussed "proposals for Monaco-specific regulations" to promote less processional racing at the tight and twisty circuit.

"The commission agreed to increase the numbers of mandatory pitstops in the race," it added, without providing further details.

"These proposals will be further discussed by the sporting advisory committee in the coming weeks."

The current mandatory minimum is one pitstop per race.

Overtaking is extremely difficult around Monaco, with qualifying and pole position a much more crucial element than at other races.

The FIA said there would also no longer be any restriction on the number of gearboxes teams could use during a season as the reliability of current designs had rendered the regulation obsolete.