ODMAR FAERO was part of the most sensational result in Faroese football history – then back at his office desk twelve hours later!
The former Forfar and Banks O’ Dee central defender – who grew up in Aberdeen – was voted Man of the Match as the Faroes stunned Czechia 2-1 in the World Cup qualifier on Sunday.
Faroe Islands star Odmar Faero went back to his office job just 12 hours after inspiring his side’s famous win over Czechia[/caption]
Faero – pictured in 2023 – was voted man of the match in the 2-1 victory[/caption]
Incredibly, it was the tiny islands’ third qualifying win in a row following victories over Gibraltar and Montenegro and means they could still clinch a play-off spot next month.
But on Monday morning 68-cap Faero was back working in a furniture office.
He told Sunsport: “There was a little party after the match but I’m 35 so I was back to my family.
“I was at work at 8am on Monday morning anyway. We’re the biggest furniture company in the islands and my job is the business-to-business side.
“We also supply about 80 per cent of the artificial football surfaces here, so that’s a little closer to home for me.
“Everyone is obviously very happy at how the matches have gone.
“Of course we know it’s a long shot to qualify for the play-offs. But in the past for us it’s been a case of ‘close but no cigar’ whereas this time we feel we have the cigar in our mouth!
“The belief in the team is fully that we can go to Croatia next month and win.
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“But we have to be realistic. The Czechs play Gibraltar in their final game and Gibraltar have lost all their matches so I don’t think the Czechs will lose.
“But we will go to Croatia and hopefully play a good game. It would be incredible for us to get through. Scotland against the Faroe Islands has a nice ring to it!
“I got a few messages over the weekend from friends from my old days at Forfar and Banks O’Dee so that was nice.
“When we reached nine points it was our highest total in a World Cup of Euros qualifying campaign so we’ve now reached twelve.
“There have been moments in the group that have been so important.
“In Czechia we lost 2-1 to a goal in the 87th minute. In Montenegro we lost 1-0 to a goal in the sixth minute of stoppage time.
The minnows still have hopes of qualifying for the World Cup play-offs[/caption]
“You can’t help but wonder what not losing those goals would have meant.
“One of the things we’ve been praised for recently is for being solid defensively. We’ve played seven qualifiers and only lost six goals in them.
“It was a case of waiting till something clicked offensively and that happened when we beat Montenegro 4-0 last week.
“It equalled the biggest win in the national team’s history so it was nice to be part of that.
Faero says the team are optimistic they can beat Croatia away from home next up[/caption]
“In the past we’ve had coaches from Denmark and Sweden but the current coach, Eydun Klakstein, is Faroese.
“He was my club coach at B36 when we won the Faroese title in 2015 and he was the national under-21 coach before getting the main job last year.
“The Faroes are so small that everyone knows one another. Eydun’s assistant Atli Gregersen is still a centre-back for Vikingur and I’ll actually be facing him for my club KI in the Faroes Cup Final on October 31!”
Odmar is the THIRD family member to be capped by his country, following in the footsteps of his father and grandfather – both also called Odmar.
He said: “My dad played in the Danish youth system alongside Michael Laudrup and Peter Schmeichel but when he came back to the Faroes he played for them.
“We moved to Scotland and when the recession hit the Faroese fishing industry, money was short.
“People stopped going to the dentist, which was what he was by then. That’s why we moved to Scotland.
“In my grandfather’s day the Faroes only played unofficial internationals, against the likes of the Orkney and Shetland Islands.”
