Ståle Solbakken

Ståle Solbakken (born 27 February 1968) is a Norwegian professional football manager and former player who is the head coach of the Norway national team. Solbakken is the first manager to take Norway to the World Cup since Egil Olsen in 1998.

During his playing career, Solbakken was named 1995 Norwegian midfielder of the year and won the Danish Superliga championship with both Aalborg and Copenhagen (in 1999 and 2001, respectively). He played 58 matches and scored nine goals for Norway during the end of the 1990s and represented the country at the 1998 World Cup and 2000 European Championship tournaments. He ended his playing career in March 2001 following a heart attack.