Magnus Wolff Eikrem (born 8 August 1990) is a Norwegian professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

who plays for

Molde FK Molde Fotballklubb () is a association football, football club based in Molde Municipality, Molde, Norway, that competes in Eliteserien, the top flight of Norwegian football league system, Norwegian football. Founded on 19 June 1911, the club w ...

Eliteserien Eliteserien () is a professional association football league in Norway and the highest level of the Norwegian football league system. Contested by 16 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the Norwegian First Division ...

. His regular playing position is in attacking midfield, though he can play anywhere across the midfield.

Career

Early years

Born in

Molde Molde () is a List of towns and cities in Norway, town and the seat of Molde Municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. It is located in the Traditional districts of Norway, traditional district of Romsdal. It is located on the Romsdal Pen ...

, Eikrem began his football career as a 12-year-old with his local club,

. He was picked up after he attended one of

Ole Gunnar Solskjær Ole Gunnar Solskjær (; born 26 February 1973) is a Norwegian professional football manager and former player who currently manages Süper Lig club Beşiktaş. He spent the majority of his playing career with Manchester United and made 67 appea ...

's soccer schools in Norway, despite the schools being for youngsters aged 14–16. Nevertheless, he impressed the coaches so much that they allowed him to attend, and he was signed by

Manchester United Manchester United Football Club, commonly referred to as Man United (often stylised as Man Utd) or simply United, is a professional association football, football club based in Old Trafford (area), Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, Engl ...

on his 16th birthday. Magnus_Eikrem_Captain

Manchester United

Eikrem was a regular starter for the United under-18 side in the 2006–07 season, and helped the team to the final of the

FA Youth Cup The Football Association Youth Challenge Cup is an English football competition run by The Football Association for under-18 sides. Only those players between the age of 15 and 18 on 31 August of the current season are eligible to take part. It ...

, where they lost to

Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...

4–3 on penalties after the two-legged match finished 2–2 on aggregate. Eikrem was one of two United players to miss a penalty in the shoot-out, the other being captain

Sam Hewson Sam Hewson (born 28 November 1988) is an English footballer who plays as a centre midfielder for KFK Kópavogur. He represented England at youth international level. Club career Early career Born in Farnworth, near Bolton, Hewson began his ca ...

. Eikrem also captained the Manchester United youth team to the final of the 2007

Milk Cup SuperCupNI, formerly called the Northern Ireland Youth Soccer Tournament and the Dale Farm Milk Cup, is an international youth football tournament held annually in Northern Ireland. The cup matches are mainly played in the North Coast area of ...

but United lost in stoppage time to Brazilian side

Fluminense Fluminense Football Club () is a Brazilian sports club based in the neighbourhood of Laranjeiras, in Rio de Janeiro, being the oldest football club in the state since its foundation in 1902. It competes in the Campeonato Brasileiro Série A, th ...

. A few days later, he played in his first game for the Manchester United first team, coming on as a substitute for

Ryan Giggs Ryan Joseph Giggs (né Wilson; born 29 November 1973) is a Welsh football coach, former player and co-owner of Salford City. He is regarded as one of the greatest players of his generation, and one of the best wingers in the history of footba ...

in a 4–0 pre-season friendly win away to

Dunfermline Athletic Dunfermline Athletic Football Club is a Scottish professional football club based in the city of Dunfermline, Fife. Founded in 1885, the club currently compete in the after winning the 2022–23 Scottish League One title. Dunfermline play at ...

. Eikrem continued as a regular member of the under-18 side throughout the 2007–08 season, making the odd appearance on the reserve team bench, before becoming a full member of the reserve side in 2008–09. During the season, he helped United to second place in the

2008–09 Premier Reserve League The 2008–09 Premier Reserve League (officially known as the 2008–09 Barclays Premier Reserve League for sponsorship reasons) is the tenth season since the establishment of the Premier Reserve League. The season began on 1 September 2008, and e ...

, as well as a cup double over

Bolton Wanderers Bolton Wanderers Football Club ( ) is a professional association football, football club based in Horwich, Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in EFL League One, League One, the third level of the Englis ...

in the Manchester and Lancashire Senior Cups. After playing in the reserve team's first four games of the 2009–10 season and scoring in a 2–1 league win over

Wigan Athletic Wigan Athletic Football Club is a professional association football club based in Wigan, Greater Manchester, England. The team competes in the EFL League One, the third level of the English football league system. Founded in 1932, they have p ...

, Eikrem was rewarded by being given the number 42 shirt for the first team's League Cup third round match against

Wolverhampton Wanderers Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club ( ), commonly referred to as Wolves, is a professional association football, football club based in Wolverhampton, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league s ...

. For the 2010–11 football season, Eikrem was named as a member of United's Champions League squad. He was named as a member of a "B-squad" alongside several other younger players such as Will Keane,

Joe Dudgeon Joseph Patrick Dudgeon (born 26 November 1990) is a football coach and scout, and former player, who is employed by the Northern Ireland under-17 team and Manchester City respectively. As a player, Dudgeon was a left-back; he began his career ...

Oliver Gill Oliver David Gill (born 15 September 1990) is an English former footballer who played as a defender for Manchester United. He also played for Bradford City on loan in 2010. He was born in Frimley, Surrey, and is the son of former Manchester Uni ...

Ben Amos Benjamin Paul Amos (born 10 April 1990) is an English professional association football, footballer who plays as a Goalkeeper (association football), goalkeeper for club Port Vale F.C., Port Vale. He was capped by England up to England nationa ...

and

Corry Evans Corry John Evans (born 30 July 1990) is a Northern Irish professional association football, footballer who plays as a midfielder or Defender (association football)#Centre-back, centre-back for club Oldham Athletic A.F.C., Oldham Athletic. A Nor ...

Molde

In January 2011, Eikrem transferred back to Norwegian team

, who were managed by former Manchester United reserve team manager Ole Gunnar Solskjær. In his first season, Eikrem was involved in the Molde squad that won

Tippeligaen Eliteserien () is a professional association football league in Norway and the highest level of the Norwegian football league system. Contested by 16 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the Norwegian First Division ...

for the first time. He helped successfully defend the title in the

2012 Tippeligaen The 2012 Tippeligaen was the 68th completed season of top division football in Norway. The competition began on 23 March 2012 and ended on 18 November 2012, with a summer break from 28 May to 30 June. Molde were the defending champions, while Høn ...

season.

Heerenveen

On 24 June 2013, Eikrem signed a four-year contract for

Heerenveen Heerenveen (, ) is a town and Municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of Friesland (Fryslân), in the Northern Netherlands. In 2021, the town had a population of 29,790 (1 January) while the m ...

. He made his debut in the

Eredivisie The Eredivisie (; "Honour Division" or "Premier Division") is a professional association football league in the Netherlands and the highest level of the Dutch football league system. The league was founded in 1956, two years after the start o ...

in a 4–2 home win against AZ. He scored his first goal for Heerenveen on 23 August 2013, against defending champions

Ajax Ajax may refer to: Greek mythology and tragedy * Ajax the Great, a Greek mythological hero, son of King Telamon and Periboea * Ajax the Lesser, a Greek mythological hero, son of Oileus, the king of Locris * Ajax (play), ''Ajax'' (play), by the an ...

Cardiff City

On 8 January 2014, Welsh side

Cardiff City Cardiff City Football Club () is a professional association football club based in Cardiff, Wales. It currently competes in , the third tier of the English football league system in the 2025–26 season following relegation. Founded in 1899 a ...

announced that Eikrem had signed a contract with the club, for an undisclosed fee and duration. He made his debut three days later, coming on as a 66th-minute substitute for Gary Medel in a 2–0 home defeat against

West Ham United West Ham United Football Club is a professional Association football, football club based in Stratford, London, Stratford, East London, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league system, English f ...

. He went on to make six top-flight appearances as Cardiff were relegated back to the second tier. After a poor start to the 2014–15 season, Solskjaer was sacked and his replacement,

Russell Slade Russell Mark Slade (born 10 October 1960) is an English former professional football manager and coach. Having had an extended career at reserve team level, Slade entered professional sports coaching with Notts County in 1993. He briefly took ...

, placed Eikrem on the transfer list. On 19 December 2014, Eikrem had his contract terminated by mutual consent after not playing under Slade.

Malmö FF

On 26 January 2015, Eikrem signed a three-year contract with Swedish champions

Malmö FF Malmö Fotbollförening (), commonly known simply as Malmö FF or MFF, is a Swedish professional football club based in Malmö, Scania. They compete in the Allsvenskan, the top division of Swedish football, and play home matches at the Eleda S ...

. On 22 February 2015, Eikrem scored one goal and made two assists in his first competitive match for the club, a cup fixture against

Assyriska FF Assyriska Fotbollsföreningen, also known simply as Assyriska FF, is a Swedish football club based in Södertälje, Stockholm County. The club, formed in 1974 by Assyrian immigrants, has advanced through the league system and is currently play ...

that Malmö won 3–0.

Seattle Sounders FC

Eikrem joined

Seattle Sounders FC Seattle Sounders FC is an American professional association football, soccer club based in Seattle. The Sounders compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference (MLS), Western Conference. The club was established on ...

on 30 January 2018. He was waived on 20 July 2018.

Return to Molde

On 25 July 2018, Eikrem returned to Molde after five years away, signing a four-and-a-half-year contract. The day after, on 26 July, he made his first appearance since returning to the club as a 65th minute substitute in a 3–0 home victory over Laçi in the Europa League. He played an important role in Molde's title-winning season in 2019, and was nominated to the Eliteserien Player of the Year award. Eikrem finished the 2019 season with 13 goals in 33 appearances in all competitions. Ahead of the 2020 season, on 17 January, Eikrem was announced as Molde's new captain.

International career

Eikrem received his first international call-up to the under-21s alongside Manchester United teammate

Joshua King Josh or Joshua King may refer to: * Josh King (basketball) (born 1985), American basketball coach * Josh King (rugby league) (born 1995), Australian rugby league footballer * Joshua King (mathematician) Joshua King (16 January 1798 – 1 Sept ...

in November 2010. Eikrem made his debut for the senior team when he replaced

Markus Henriksen Markus Henriksen (born 25 July 1992) is a former Norwegian professional Association football, footballer who plays as a midfielder. He last played for Eliteserien club Rosenborg BK, Rosenborg. Club career Rosenborg Henriksen moved from Trond IL ...

as a substitute in the 75th minute in a 1-1 friendly draw against

Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...

on 15 January 2012.

Personal life

Eikrem is the son of former Molde player, Knut Hallvard Eikrem, who made over 220 appearances for the club in his time there. Eikrem has been diagnosed with diabetes mellitus.

Career statistics

Club

International

Appearances and goals by national team and year :''As of 4 July 2015''

Honours

Molde *

2011 The year marked the start of a Arab Spring, series of protests and revolutions throughout the Arab world advocating for democracy, reform, and economic recovery, later leading to the depositions of world leaders in Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen ...

2012 2012 was designated as: *International Year of Cooperatives *International Year of Sustainable Energy for All Events January *January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins. * January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...

2019 This was the year in which the first known human case of COVID-19 was documented, preceding COVID-19 pandemic, the pandemic which was declared by the World Health Organization the following year. Up to that point, 2019 had been described as ...

2022 The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...

Norwegian Cup The Norwegian Football Cup () is the main knockout cup competition in Norwegian football. It is run by the Football Association of Norway and has been contested since 1902, making it the oldest football tournament in the country. The tournament ...

2013 2013 was the first year since 1987 to contain four unique digits (a span of 26 years). 2013 was designated as: *International Year of Water Cooperation *International Year of Quinoa Events January * January 5 – 2013 Craig, Alask ...

2021 Like the year 2020, 2021 was also heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, due to the emergence of multiple Variants of SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19 variants. The major global rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, which began at the end of 2020, continued ...

2023 Catastrophic natural disasters in 2023 included the Lists of 21st-century earthquakes, 5th-deadliest earthquake of the 21st century 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquakes, striking Turkey and Syria, leaving up to 62,000 people dead; Cyclone Freddy ...

Malmö FF *

Allsvenskan Allsvenskan (; ), also known as Fotbollsallsvenskan (, ) is a professional association football league in Sweden and the highest level of the Swedish football league system. Founded in 1924, it operates on a system of promotion and relegatio ...

2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...

2017 2017 was designated as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development by the United Nations General Assembly. Events January * January 1 – Istanbul nightclub shooting: A gunman dressed as Santa Claus opens fire at the ...

References

External links

Malmö FF profile
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Eikrem, Magnus Wolff 1990 births Living people Footballers from Molde Norwegian men's footballers 21st-century Norwegian sportsmen Men's association football forwards Molde FK players Manchester United F.C. players SC Heerenveen players Cardiff City F.C. players Malmö FF players Seattle Sounders FC players Eliteserien players Eredivisie players Premier League players English Football League players Allsvenskan players Major League Soccer players Norway men's international footballers Norway men's youth international footballers Norway men's under-21 international footballers Norwegian expatriate men's footballers Expatriate men's footballers in England Expatriate men's footballers in the Netherlands Expatriate men's footballers in Sweden Expatriate men's footballers in Wales Norwegian expatriate sportspeople in England Norwegian expatriate sportspeople in the Netherlands Norwegian expatriate sportspeople in Sweden Norwegian expatriate sportspeople in Wales