SK Brann now ‘praying for a miracle’ against Everton

Feb 19 2008 by Ian Doyle, Liverpool Daily Post

SK BRANN coach Mons Ivar Mjelde has written off his side’s hopes of progressing in the UEFA Cup at the expense of Everton.

The Norwegians took on the Premier League high-flyers last Wednesday and suffered a 2-0 home defeat after goals from Leon Osman and Victor Anichebe.

With the prospect of scoring at least twice at Goodison Park too difficult for Mjelde to believe in, he is hoping for a miracle to keep their European hopes alive.

“We need a miracle of a lifetime,” he said. “To believe in qualifying is pointless.

“We’ll start at 0-0 and try to get the best possible result.

“If we start with the hope that we can make it, it might end very badly.

“You don’t learn a lot by losing 5-0 at Goodison Park. The goal is to play well there.”

Despite being defeated in the first leg at Brann Stadion, Mjelde does not believe his troops were over-run by David Moyes’s side.

“We were not outplayed at all. During some periods, we put them under pressure at times and the goals come after marginal events,” he continued.

“Against Hamburg, we were outplayed at times and felt that we were chanceless.

“Against Everton we coped until little while into the second half. Result-wise we deserved better.”