There was a tenth place at Sandefjord this season and even though they were only one point above relegation qualification, this season did not seem as scary as the previous two.
Now they have in place the first signing of the winter, Sandefjord has brought in the Swedish centre-back Zinedin Smajlovic the day after it became clear that Fredrik Tobias Berglie is leaving after two years as the club’s “helmsman” in defence.
21-year-old Zinedin Smajlovic comes from Sandviken in Swedish Superettan. “Now I’m looking forward to playing with my old buddy Elias Jemal again. We played together in Brommapojkarna. Elias is both a good friend – and a good player,” says Smajlovic to Sandefjord’s pages.
As a 19-year-old, the Swede moved to Serie A club Lecce, where he struggled with little playing time. Then he went on loan to Serie B club Lecco, where he was not a great success either, before moving on to Sandviken this summer.
In Superettan, the centre-back recorded one goal in ten games for the team that finished sixth in the league.
Smajlovic says that he does not have a great relationship with either Norway or Sandefjord, but admits that he has brought a couple of Norwegian national team players with him.
“Especially in the summer, it’s supposedly nice to be there, but I have to be honest to say that I don’t pay much attention to the Eliteserien. I only look at the clips Elias Jemal shares on social media. Otherwise, it goes in Erling Braut Haaland and Martin Ødegaard, I have control over those.
However, Smajlovic does not get to know Ødegaard’s father, Hans Erik Ødegaard, any better, as he recently left Sandefjord to become head coach of Lillestrøm. Andreas Tegström has taken over the head coach responsibility.
