Bodø/Glimt faces Molde in the Norwegian Cup on Thursday at 19:00, trying to overcome a 33-year-old cup drought. The match was moved forward one day to Thursday, March 5 at 19:00, as announced by the Norwegian Football Association, due to Bodø/Glimt's advancement to the Champions League round of 16 after beating Inter 5–2 on aggregate. Molde has beaten Bodø/Glimt in two cup finals.
Odin Bjørtuft understands frustration from other Norwegian clubs over match postponements from Champions League participation and hopes all of Norway will cheer for Bodø/Glimt. Coach Kjetil Knutsen understands frequent changes make it unpredictable for others and states the solution is to start earlier and play longer to have more room to move matches. He hopes Norwegian football is happy when Norwegian teams do well in Europe.
Ahead of their Champions League match against Sporting, Bodø/Glimt player Odin Bjørtuft dismisses the favorite label and believes people underestimate Portuguese Sporting. Bodø/Glimt sees themselves as underdogs and looks forward to a new test. Coach Kjetil Knutsen states that Sporting is a capable opponent, has been league champion the last two seasons, and is currently second in the league, four points behind leader Porto.
Striker Luis Suárez has excelled this season, replacing Swedish goal guarantor Viktor Gyökeres, with 23 goals in 24 games in Portugal this season. Coach Kjetil Knutsen says they need to take care of Luis Suárez, describing him as smart, tough, and smelling the goal. For the cup match, Coach Kjetil Knutsen makes several changes from the team that started against Inter Milan.
Goalkeeper Nikita Haikin did not travel, so reserve goalkeeper Julian Faye Lund is in goal. In central defense, Haitam Aleesami comes in, while at left back, Isak Dybvik Määttä comes in. Sondre Auklend comes in for Håkon Evjen in midfield, while Andreas Helmersen takes Kasper Høgh's place.
Bodø/Glimt's lineup is 4-3-3: Faye Lund – Sjøvold, Bjørtuft, Aleesami, Määttä – Auklend, Berg, Fet – Blomberg, Helmersen, Hauge.