Ragnvald Soma (born 10 November 1979) is a Norwegian former footballer who played as a defender for his childhood club Frøyland Idrettslag. He signed for them 02.02.2014 effectively retiring from professional football.

Ragnvald Soma
Personal information
Full name Ragnvald Soma
Date of birth (1979-11-10) 10 November 1979 (age 44)
Place of birth Kvernaland, Norway
Height 1.89 m (6 ft 2 in)
Position(s) Defender
Team information
Current team
Frøyland Idrettslag
Youth career
Frøyland
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1997–2000 Bryne 99 (5)
2001–2002 West Ham United 7 (0)
2002–2003 Bryne 36 (2)
2004–2005 Brann[1] 52 (1)
2006–2009 Viking[2] 88 (4)
2009–2012 Rapid Vienna 65 (2)
2012–2013 Nordsjælland 1 (0)
2013 Lyngby 8 (1)
2013 Førde
International career
1998–2001 Norway U21 22 (0)
2004–2005 Norway 5 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 31 July 2013

Position edit

He was primarily a central defender, although he had been both a left back and a defensive midfielder earlier in his career.[3]

Club career edit

Early career edit

Soma started his professional career in Bryne FK, amassing 99 league games.

West Ham United edit

In January 2001 he moved to English Premier League club West Ham United for £800,000. His stay there lasted just over one and a half years, during which Soma made only seven league appearances before returning to Bryne on a free transfer. Whilst at West Ham he played in their 1–0 victory over Manchester United at Old Trafford in the 2000–01 FA Cup,[4] coming on as a late substitute for his debut.

Norwegian football edit

With Bryne relegated at the end of the 2003 season, Soma moved to SK Brann. He became an instant hit, being voted player of the year by several newspapers[citation needed] and becoming a regular in the Norway national team. In March 2006 he transferred to Viking for an undisclosed fee believed to be around £500,000, with Brann also getting right back Bjørn Dahl as a part-exchange.

Austria and Denmark edit

After over three years at Viking, Soma signed for Rapid Vienna on 14 August 2009.[5]

After a spell with the Danish Superliga side Nordsjælland, Soma joined the Danish 1st Division side Lyngby. After his contract with Lyngby expired, he was training with his old club Viking.[6] He played the second half of 2013 for Førde IL.[7]

International career edit

Soma played 22 matches for the Norwegian under-21 team before he was capped five times while playing for Norway between 2004 and 2005.[8]

Career statistics edit

Season Club Division League Cup Total
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
1997 Bryne Adeccoligaen 25 0 0 0 25 0
1998 24 0 0 0 24 0
1999 25 0 3 3 28 3
2000 25 5 1 0 26 5
2000–01 West Ham Premier League 4 0 1 0 5 0
2001–02 3 0 2 0 5 0
2002 Bryne Tippeligaen 11 1 1 0 12 1
2003 25 1 3 0 28 1
2004 Brann 26 0 7 0 33 0
2005 26 1 4 0 30 1
2006 Viking 24 0 4 0 28 0
2007 26 1 5 0 31 1
2008 18 0 3 0 21 0
2009 20 3 3 1 23 4
2009–10 Rapid Wien Bundesliga 33 1 0 0 33 1
2010–11 32 1 0 0 32 1
2011–12 14 0 0 0 14 0
2012–13 Nordsjælland Danish Superliga 1 0 0 0 1 0
2012–13 Lyngby Danish 1st Division 8 1 0 0 8 1
Career Total 370 15 37 4 407 19

References edit

  1. ^ "Sportsklubben Brann – Ekte lidenskap har et navn". Archived from the original on 27 September 2007. Retrieved 3 June 2009.
  2. ^ "NIFS – Norsk & Internasjonal Fotballstatistikk". Nifs.no. Retrieved 12 June 2013.
  3. ^ Soma-Zeit in Hütteldorf Archived 28 September 2009 at the Wayback Machine
  4. ^ "Manchester United 0 West Ham 1". Sporting Life. 28 January 2001. Retrieved 14 August 2009.
  5. ^ "Soma signerte toårskontrakt med Rapid | Aftenbladet.no". Fotball.aftenbladet.no. 14 August 2009. Archived from the original on 25 February 2012. Retrieved 12 June 2013.
  6. ^ Fornes, Fredrik (12 August 2013). "Ragnvald Soma trener med Viking" (in Norwegian). Stavanger Aftenblad. Retrieved 30 August 2013.
  7. ^ Iversen, Espen (11 October 2013). "Ingen planer om å gi seg". Rogalands Avis (in Norwegian). p. 21.
  8. ^ "Ragnvald Soma's profil". fotball.no (in Norwegian). Football Association of Norway. Retrieved 30 August 2013.

External links edit