Per Egil Ahlsen
Born: 04.03.1958 in Fredrikstad
Position: Defender/Midfielder
Caps: 54
Goals: 3
Profile
In Norway, Per Egil Ahlsen is best remembered for his incredible 35-yard free kick that decided the 1984 cup final between Fredrikstad and Viking. That strike is often mentioned as the finest goal ever scored in Norwegian football. But Ahlsen was more than a free kick specialist. He was also an excellent and versatile player who was equally adept in midfield as in central defence.
Ahlsen began his career with his home town club Fredrikstad, and made his first-team debut in 1976. He soon became a regular in the side, as a reliable midfielder with an excellent long-range shot. In 1983, Ahlsen, now captain of Fredrikstad, was finally given his international debut for the Olympic team, where he was one of the best players on the pitch in the 4-2 win against Finland, and immediately became an important player for that team, which consisted mostly of home-based players. Ahlsen would soon be promoted to the regular international squad as well, where he made his debut in the friendly against Luxembourg in 1984. He also got the opportunity to shine at the 1984 Olympic Games. Norway had finished third in their Olympic qualifying group, but when group winners Poland and second-placed GDR both withdrew due to the Eastern Bloc boycott of the 1984 Games, Norway was given the vacant spot. Ahlsen was perhaps Norway's best player in the Olympic tournament, and scored his first international goal against France.
Later that year, he scored the finest and most important goal of his career, when he fired in the winning goal in the Norwegian cup final - a spectacular 35-yard free kick that went straight into the top corner, leaving Viking goalkeeper Erik Thorstvedt chanceless. It was a bittersweet triumph for Ahlsen, as Fredrikstad were relegated the same season. Despite the relegation, Ahlsen remained loyal to Fredrikstad, and playing in the Second Division did not affect his place or his play in the national team. However, after two failed promotion attempts, Ahlsen decided he had to move on, and joined Brann in 1987.
In an ironic twist, Ahlsen was now dropped from the national team, despite having returned to the top division, and putting in some excellent performances for his new club. A new national coach, Tord Grip, was appointed in the summer of 1987, and the Swede did not seem to rate Ahlsen - which put his international career on hold until Grip was replaced by Ingvar Stadheim a year later. Now converted to centre-back, Ahlsen established himself as the first-choice partner to Rune Bratseth in the national team.
At club level, Ahlsen played in two consecutive cup finals in 1987 and 1988, finishing on the losing side both times. He also did an excellent job marking star striker Gianluca Vialli in the Cup Winners Cup ties against Sampdoria in 1989 (Brann had qualified because Rosenborg won the double in 1988). Despite Ahlsen's heroics, Brann were still knocked out, 3-0 on aggregate. According to newspaper rumors, Sampdoria inquired about Ahlsen's services after the first game, but decided not to pursue their interest in the player when they heard he was 31 years old.
In 1990, now aged 32, Ahlsen was finally given his chance to play in one of Europe's big leagues, when he was loaned out to German club Fortuna Düsseldorf, where he joined his former Fredrikstad teammate Jørn Andersen. The spell at Düsseldorf was not a particularly successful one. Düsseldorf finished in the lower half of the table, and Ahlsen played only 11 games. He returned to Brann for the 1991 season, where he put up another excellent season, and despite his rather advanced age, he was still a regular in the national team.
Ahlsen's last international match came against Bermuda in 1992, one month before his 34th birthday. At the end of the 1992 season, he returned to Fredrikstad, where he played another couple of seasons, before finally hanging up his boots in 1995. He now works as assistant coach for the club.
| # | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Goals | Competition |
| Fredrikstad | ||||||
| 1 | 26.10.1983 | Moss | Finland | 4-2 | Olympic Games Qual. | |
| 2 | 29.10.1983 | Stavanger | East Germany | 1-1 | Olympic Games Qual. | |
| 3 | 09.11.1983 | Poznan | Poland | 0-1 | Olympic Games Qual. | |
| 4 | 12.11.1983 | Babelsberg | East Germany | 0-1 | Olympic Games Qual. | |
| 5 | 01.05.1984 | Ettelbrück | Luxembourg | 2-0 | ||
| 6 | 23.05.1984 | Szekesfehervar | Hungary | 0-0 | ||
| 7 | 06.06.1984 | Trondheim | Wales | 1-0 | ||
| 8 | 20.06.1984 | Reykjavik | Iceland | 1-0 | ||
| 9 | 29.07.1984 | Boston | Chile | 0-0 | Olympic Games | |
| 10 | 31.07.1984 | Boston | France | 1-2 |
|
Olympic Games |
| 11 | 02.08.1984 | Boston | Qatar | 2-0 | Olympic Games | |
| 12 | 29.08.1984 | Drammen | Poland | 1-1 | ||
| 13 | 12.09.1984 | Oslo | Switzerland | 0-1 | World Cup Qualifier | |
| 14 | 26.09.1984 | Copenhagen | Denmark | 0-1 | World Cup Qualifier | |
| 15 | 10.10.1984 | Oslo | Soviet Union | 1-1 | World Cup Qualifier | |
| 16 | 17.10.1984 | Oslo | Republic of Ireland | 1-0 | World Cup Qualifier | |
| 17 | 26.02.1985 | Wrexham | Wales | 1-1 |
|
|
| 18 | 17.04.1985 | Frankfurt/Oder | East Germany | 0-1 | ||
| 19 | 01.05.1985 | Dublin | Republic of Ireland | 0-0 | World Cup Qualifier | |
| 20 | 22.05.1985 | Gothenburg | Sweden | 0-1 | ||
| 21 | 05.06.1985 | Bergen | Wales | 4-2 | ||
| 22 | 14.08.1985 | Oslo | East Germany | 0-1 | ||
| 23 | 10.09.1985 | Oslo | Egypt | 3-0 | ||
| 24 | 25.09.1985 | Lecce | Italy | 2-1 | ||
| 25 | 16.10.1985 | Oslo | Denmark | 1-5 | World Cup Qualifier | |
| 26 | 13.11.1985 | Luzern | Switzerland | 1-1 | World Cup Qualifier | |
| 27 | 26.02.1986 | St. George's | Grenada | 2-1 | ||
| 28 | 04.06.1986 | Bucharest | Romania | 1-3 | ||
| 29 | 09.09.1986 | Oslo | Hungary | 0-0 | ||
| 30 | 29.10.1986 | Simferopol | Soviet Union | 0-4 | European Champ. Qual. | |
| Brann | ||||||
| 31 | 24.03.1987 | Wroclaw | Poland | 1-4 | ||
| 32 | 28.05.1987 | Oslo | Italy | 0-0 | ||
| 33 | 03.06.1987 | Oslo | Soviet Union | 0-1 | European Champ. Qual. | |
| 34 | 16.06.1987 | Oslo | France | 2-0 | European Champ. Qual. | |
| 35 | 12.08.1987 | Oslo | Sweden | 0-0 | ||
| 36 | 04.11.1988 | Bratislava | Czechoslovakia | 2-3 | ||
| 37 | 05.09.1989 | Oslo | France | 1-1 | World Cup Qualifier | |
| 38 | 11.10.1989 | Sarajevo | Yugoslavia | 0-1 | World Cup Qualifier | |
| 39 | 25.10.1989 | Kuwait City | Kuwait | 2-2 | ||
| 40 | 15.11.1989 | Glasgow | Scotland | 1-1 | World Cup Qualifier | |
| 41 | 27.03.1990 | Belfast | Northern Ireland | 3-2 | ||
| 42 | 22.08.1990 | Stavanger | Sweden | 1-2 |
|
|
| Fortuna Düsseldorf (Germany) - on loan | ||||||
| 43 | 12.09.1990 | Moscow | Soviet Union | 0-2 | European Champ. Qual. | |
| 44 | 10.10.1990 | Bergen | Hungary | 0-0 | European Champ. Qual. | |
| 45 | 31.10.1990 | Oslo | Cameroon | 6-1 | ||
| Brann | ||||||
| 46 | 17.04.1991 | Vienna | Austria | 0-0 | ||
| 47 | 01.05.1991 | Oslo | Cyprus | 3-0 | European Champ. Qual. | |
| 48 | 23.05.1991 | Oslo | Romania | 1-0 | ||
| 49 | 05.06.1991 | Oslo | Italy | 2-1 | European Champ. Qual. | |
| 50 | 08.08.1991 | Oslo | Sweden | 1-2 | ||
| 51 | 25.09.1991 | Oslo | Czechoslovakia | 2-3 | European Champ. Qual. | |
| 52 | 30.10.1991 | Szombathely | Hungary | 0-0 | European Champ. Qual. | |
| 53 | 13.11.1991 | Genova | Italy | 1-1 | European Champ. Qual. | |
| 54 | 04.02.1992 | Hamilton | Bermuda | 3-1 | ||
NOTE: Matches in red are not recognized as full internationals by FIFA.