– I think maybe the goal will not do much for my confidence, because my opponent is not the best opponent in the world. But I noticed his shoulders were maybe a little more relaxed now.

That’s what Jørgen Strand Larsen told NRK about his first goal for the A national team.

In his seventh appearance with the flag on his chest, the Halden native put up a brilliant display against Jordan on Thursday night, scoring once, making two assists and being named best on pitch at the NRK exchange.

– I received an SMS from Rafa

In Spain, Rafael Benítez clearly has his eye on him.

The renowned coach is now Strand Larsen’s boss at Celta Vigo and quickly made a splash after the Norwegian’s 6-0 win against Jordan.

– I received an SMS from Rafa. This is a bit of fun. That’s my coach, but he’s relatively big. “I’m starting to get used to him being my coach now, but there are times when I think he’s big, yes,” said the striker with a smile.

The Norwegian striker said that the former Liverpool manager was very good at giving praise to his players.

– I really appreciate it. He is a very caring coach. He was worried that we were also doing well. “I think he just wanted to make sure everything was OK,” he said.

– Appreciate it

Strand Larsen also revealed the contents of a short message from the star coach.

– He wrote: “Congratulations. I hope everything is fine” and we will meet on Thursday. So not many people can answer it. All I have to do is say thank you and see you later. “I just appreciate that he cares and follows through,” he said.

Strand Larsen was surprised at how calm Benítez was. Even though he is described as a perfectionist, he will not be disappointed if the team or individual players do not go according to plan.

– He’s not crazy if things don’t go his way. He takes it easy and tries to teach us the right way. That’s when I learn the best too. “I don’t want a coach who just yells at me,” he said.

– Have learned a lot

It wasn’t just talk and words of praise that Strand Larsen got from the Celta coach. He has developed his game in several areas under the guidance of the 63 year old man.

He’s so big and strong that he’s concretely working on getting better at turning the wrong way.

– In the last month, Rafa has been very worried about this, and he said that “a simple, slight touch is enough”. I’ve tried following him.

Apart from that, Benitez gave a bit of other advice for Strand Larsen to swallow whole.

– He asked me to shoot low. I scored a goal in La Liga last time where my shot went low, I didn’t always have to look for the angle, that’s a tricky thing. It’s a simple thing, but fun, and I feel like I’ve learned a lot from it, he said.

– Jørgen is in the right place

National team assistant Brede Hangeland also monitors the players closely outside meetings.

According to him, Strand Larsen went to a very good school Benitez at Celta Vigo.

– It is an honor to have a competent coach. I think Jørgen is in the right place in his career. “With the attitude he has, he will get better and better,” Hangeland told NRK.

– He has many of the same qualities as Erling Braut Haaland, big, strong, fast and good finishing. Does he have the potential to get close to Erling in the end?

– It has to be done. Erling is at a high level, which everyone agrees with. Jørgen is taking great strides and is a very nice guy. Interested in learning. Although he hasn’t played many national A games, he is actually the leader of the group here in many ways, based on the strength of example. He’s right where he needs to be in development, Hangeland said.

Warning

But sometimes there can be too much of a good thing, said the Norwegian assistant.

– As I often tell him, he is very loyal. It’s 100 percent in everything he does. He almost had to practice to get a bigger difference between the maximum action and the slightly lower action. He plays at a heart rate of 190 all the time. It will be difficult, but rather than him not doing his job. He is a top player, a good player, and still young. He can take big steps and get even better, Hangeland said.

On Tuesday, Strand Larsen could make his eighth international appearance when Georgia visits Ullevaal. The left-handed striker is probably most relevant as a winger now that Haaland is likely to start, but he doesn’t care much about that.

– I’m ready to play anywhere, and then it depends on Ståle where he wants to play me. “Whether it’s from the start or from the bench,” said Strand Larsen.

The game against Georgia starts at 8:45pm on Tuesday night and is already sold out.