Viking with European representatives and artificial grass. At home, grass will be our advantage, says Priske

On Wednesday, Sparta learned its opponent for the second round of the European Conference League and will face Norway’s Viking in the cups. What did their new Danish coach Brian Priske have to say about the draw?

Sparta cannot be satisfied with the draw. As an unseeded team, Viking is a strong opponent in the second preliminary round, especially considering the fact that the pool included Lithuania’s Panevežys, Moldova’s Milsami and Latvia’s Valmiera.

On the other hand, it could have been worse. AIK Stockholm from Sweden was a scarecrow, Rakow Czestochowa also has a strong squad, which missed the first place by only five points and with captain Tomas Petrasek dominated the league cup.

“We will start to analyse Viking, their previous matches and those they are yet to play, as the Norwegian competition is still ongoing. They will have matches every week until our mutual duel in July. That gives us plenty of time to prepare,” Priske told club TV.

The value of the Viking squad is just under nine million euros. The squad includes two Icelandic players, one each from Slovenia and Australia, otherwise it is mostly Norwegians and Swedes, and there is also one Dutchman.

Still, Sparta will be a fairly clear favourite, if only because of their cup experience. The home environment may play in favour of the Norwegian underdog, as some other Norwegian teams play on artificial grass.

“I prefer to play matches on a natural surface, that’s the best for football. It will definitely be an advantage for us to play on natural grass. Generally most of the young players from different academies around the world are used to artificial grass. Itis the same for our boys,” continued the Danish Sparta coach.

Viking is a greenhorn in the European Cup, in this respect it could be compared to Slovácko. The only experience since 2010 is the unsuccessful Europa League second preliminary round with Aberdeen from the 2020/21 season.

The fact that the current third team in the Norwegian league will be playing in their home stadium in the rematch and will be roughed up as the Norwegian league gets underway also plays into their hands. On the aforementioned artificial grass, plus we know Sparta in the European qualifiers.

“It doesn’t matter if we start at home or away. Of course I prefer home games, but in the final it depends how well we prepare to give a performance that will win the game. That’s the most important thing,” Priske added.

Source: AC Sparta Praha