Hallvar Thoresen
Born: 12.04.1957 in Larvik
Position: Midfielder/Forward
Caps: 50
Goals: 9
Profile
As the son of Gunnar Thoresen, football was in Hallvar Thoresen's blood. While Hallvar did not get as many caps as his father, many would argue that he was an even better player. He is without question one of Norway's most successful exports ever, and widely regarded as one of Norway's best players of the 1980s. Perhaps even the best. He also holds the distinction of being one of only seven Norwegian international footballers who throughout their career never played in the domestic top flight.
Hallvar began his career at his father's old team Larvik Turn, who were now playing in the third division, far removed from its glory days in the 1950s. However, his career at Larvik Turn would did not last very long, as Hallvar had far bigger ambitions than playing in the third division. In an age when few Norwegians had succeeded abroad, he took a gamble, and moved to the Netherlands at age 17, where he signed for Twente. It was a bold move, but Thoresen soon proved the sceptics wrong by establishing himself as a regular at the club by the time he was 19. He helped the club win the Dutch Cup in 1977, and the next year, his achievements in Holland earned him his international debut in a friendly against the Republic of Ireland. Ten days later, he scored his first international goal against Denmark.
Thoresen was a hard-working attacking midfielder, whose leadership and professional attitude was a great asset to the team. He wasn't as creative as Tom Lund, but he had the ability to find openings for his teammates up front, or finish the move himself. In 1980, he was named captain of the national side - a role he kept for the rest of his international career. Overall, Thoresen captained Norway on 38 occations. Only Thorbjørn Svenssen has played more games as Norway captain.
In 1981, having established himself as one of the best players in the Eredivisie, Thoresen was inevitably signed by one of Holland's big three: PSV Eindhoven. He quickly established himself as a regular in the side and became a fan favorite. Later that year, he cemented his status as a national hero in Norway when he scored the winning goal in Norway's historic win against England - the one that spawned radio commentator Bjørge Lillelien's famous "Your boys took a hell of a beating!" tirade. Norway still finished last in the qualifying group, but in 1982, led by Thoresen, Lund and Arne Larsen Økland, Norway made a promising start to the Euro 84 qualifying campaign and it was beginning to look as if Norway could actually qualify for a major tournament. However, when Lund retired, the team fell apart. Still, it was not Thoresen's fault. He was usually among Norway's best players whenever he wore the flag on his chest, and continued to be a vital member of the team until new coach Tord Grip decided to discard the veterans and build a new team in 1988.
At club level, Thoresen was one of the key players for PSV in a side that also included the likes of Ruud Gullit and Ronald Koeman. And in 1986, after several near misses, the club won the Dutch championship. PSV retained the championship for the next two years, though Thoresen missed large parts of the 1987/88 season because of injury. The club also won the European Cup that year, but because of his injuries, Thoresen did not play in the final and had not played enough matches to get a winner's medal. Overall, Thoresen played 315 matches in the Eredivisie and scored 152 goals.
In the summer of 1988, Thoresen returned to Norway and played briefly for ambitious second division side Frigg before hanging up his boots at the end of the season. Since then, Thoresen has had coaching jobs at Frigg, Brann, Strømsgodset and Hønefoss with limited success. His most recent coaching job was for the Norwegian U21 team, where he worked from 2004 to 2006. He now works as a television pundit for NRK, and has also worked part-time for his old club Twente as a Scandinavian-based scout.
National Team Appearances
| # | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Goals | Competition |
| Twente (Netherlands) | ||||||
| 1 | 21.05.1978 | Oslo | Republic of Ireland | 0-0 | ||
| 2 | 31.05.1978 | Oslo | Denmark | 1-2 |
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| 3 | 20.08.1978 | Oslo | Austria | 0-2 | European Champ. Qual. | |
| 4 | 20.09.1978 | Lokeren | Belgium | 1-1 | European Champ. Qual. | |
| 5 | 25.10.1978 | Glasgow | Scotland | 2-3 | European Champ. Qual. | |
| 6 | 07.06.1978 | Oslo | Scotland | 0-4 | European Champ. Qual. | |
| 7 | 15.08.1979 | Oslo | Sweden | 2-0 | ||
| 8 | 12.09.1979 | Oslo | Belgium | 1-2 | European Champ. Qual. | |
| 9 | 01.11.1979 | Lisbon | Portugal | 1-3 | European Champ. Qual. | |
| 10 | 22.05.1980 | Oslo | Bulgaria | 1-0 | ||
| 11 | 04.06.1980 | Copenhagen | Denmark | 1-3 | ||
| 12 | 21.08.1980 | Oslo | Finland | 6-1 | ||
| 13 | 24.09.1980 | Oslo | Romania | 1-1 | World Cup Qualifier | |
| 14 | 29.10.1980 | Bern | Switzerland | 2-1 | World Cup Qualifier | |
| 15 | 29.04.1981 | Pleven | Bulgaria | 0-1 | ||
| 16 | 20.05.1981 | Oslo | Hungary | 1-2 |
|
World Cup Qualifier |
| PSV Eindhoven (Netherlands) | ||||||
| 17 | 09.09.1981 | Oslo | England | 2-1 |
|
World Cup Qualifier |
| 18 | 23.09.1981 | Copenhagen | Denmark | 1-2 | ||
| 19 | 28.04.1982 | Stavanger | Finland | 1-1 |
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| 20 | 12.05.1982 | Oslo | West Germany | 2-4 | ||
| 21 | 11.08.1982 | Oslo | Sweden | 1-0 | ||
| 22 | 22.09.1982 | Swansea | Wales | 0-1 | European Champ. Qual. | |
| 23 | 13.10.1982 | Oslo | Yugoslavia | 3-1 | European Champ. Qual. | |
| 24 | 27.10.1982 | Sofia | Bulgaria | 2-2 |
|
European Champ. Qual. |
| 25 | 01.06.1983 | Oslo | Hungary | 1-1 | ||
| 26 | 10.08.1983 | Oslo | Romania | 0-0 | ||
| 27 | 07.09.1983 | Oslo | Bulgaria | 1-2 | European Champ. Qual. | |
| 28 | 21.09.1983 | Oslo | Wales | 0-0 | European Champ. Qual. | |
| 29 | 12.10.1983 | Belgrade | Yugoslavia | 1-2 |
|
European Champ. Qual. |
| 30 | 01.05.1984 | Ettelbrück | Luxembourg | 2-0 |
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| 31 | 23.05.1984 | Szekesfehervar | Hungary | 0-0 | ||
| 32 | 06.06.1984 | Trondheim | Wales | 1-0 | ||
| 33 | 26.09.1984 | Copenhagen | Denmark | 0-1 | World Cup Qualifier | |
| 34 | 10.10.1984 | Oslo | Soviet Union | 1-1 |
|
World Cup Qualifier |
| 35 | 17.10.1984 | Oslo | Republic of Ireland | 1-0 | World Cup Qualifier | |
| 36 | 20.12.1984 | Ismailiya | Egypt | 1-0 | ||
| 37 | 26.02.1985 | Wrexham | Wales | 1-1 | ||
| 38 | 01.05.1985 | Dublin | Republic of Ireland | 0-0 | World Cup Qualifier | |
| 39 | 14.08.1985 | Oslo | East Germany | 0-1 | ||
| 40 | 25.09.1985 | Lecce | Italy | 2-1 | ||
| 41 | 16.10.1985 | Oslo | Denmark | 1-5 | World Cup Qualifier | |
| 42 | 30.10.1985 | Moscow | Soviet Union | 0-1 | World Cup Qualifier | |
| 43 | 13.11.1985 | Luzern | Switzerland | 1-1 | World Cup Qualifier | |
| 44 | 30.04.1986 | Oslo | Argentina | 1-0 | ||
| 45 | 13.05.1986 | Oslo | Denmark | 1-0 |
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| 46 | 24.03.1987 | Wroclaw | Poland | 1-4 | ||
| 47 | 28.05.1987 | Oslo | Italy | 0-0 | ||
| 48 | 03.06.1987 | Oslo | Soviet Union | 0-1 | European Champ. Qual. | |
| 49 | 16.06.1987 | Oslo | France | 2-0 | European Champ. Qual. | |
| 50 | 12.08.1987 | Oslo | Sweden | 0-0 | ||