Bjørn Helge Riise

Bjørn Helge Riise
Fulham info
Full name	Bjørn Helge Semundseth Riise
Date of birth	21 Jun 1983
Place of birth	Ålesund, Møre og Romsdal, Norway
Height	5ft 9in (1.75m)
Playing position	Midfielder, Right winger, Central midfielder
Current player?
Number(s) worn	17 (2009-2012)
Debut	FK Vėtra (a) (30 Jul 2009)
Last Appearance	Crusaders (h) (21 Jul 2011)
Joined from	Lillestrøm, £1.76 million - 22 Jul 2009
Left for	Lillestrøm, Free - 28 Jul 2012
League apps (gls)	15 (0)
All apps (gls)	35 (0)
Other clubs	Hessa (youth) Aalesund (2000-2003 & 2015-2018) Standard Liège (2003-2005) → Brussels (loan) (2004-2005) Lillestrøm (2005-2009) & (2012-2015) → Sheff Utd (loan) (2011) (from Fulham) → Portsmouth (loan) (2011) (from Fulham) Sogndal (2018)
International	Norway (2006-2013)
Apps (gls)	35 (1)

Bjørn Helge Riise was a midfielder, formerly of Fulham. He was signed by Roy Hodgson in summer 2009 and thought spending three seasons at the club, only managed a small number of appearances. He was usually used on the right wing although was capable of playing a more central role. A Norweigan international, his brother John Arne Riise also joined the club two years after his arrival.

Career

Before Fulham

Bjørn played for amateur football club Hessa, an island close to Aalesund, whom he was scouted by and signed as a 17-year-old in 2000. He made nearly fifty league appearances for them in three years and had not gone unnoticed with clubs in England reportedly close to signing him - first Manchester City and then Cardiff City. It was when the deal with Cardiff fell through when he stated "I don't understand what Aalesund want from me. I almost want to quit football because it's not fun anymore" and came close to retiring at a very young age. He moved on shortly afterwards to Belgium, playing for Standard Liège and then for Brussels on loan. When his contract expired at Liège, Brussels and SK Brann were interested in signing him, though he eventually moved back to Norway and signed for Lillestrøm. He enjoyed four seasons there, where he gained his first international cap until 2011 when Fulham came knocking.

Fulham (2009-2012)

He signed for Fulham in July 2009 under Roy Hodgson and was used mainly as a substitute throughout the 2011-12 season, and saw a fair amount of playing time in the club's Europa League run and was an unused substitute in the Final. The following season, unfortunately for Bjørn, saw him play very little and the season after even less. He quickly became surplus to requirements as he slipped down the pecking order and was loaned out to Sheffield United in the latter part of 2010-11 and Portsmouth on a short loan in November 2011.

Despite not making an impact at Fulham, he will be remembered for his role in the vital Europa League meeting away at Basel in which he made two assists in a 3-2 win.

After Fulham

Bjørn returned to former club Lillestrøm on a free transfer in July 2012

Fulham Statistics

Appearances

Season	Premier League		FA Cup		League Cup		Europa League		Total
	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
2009-10	12	0	3	0	1	0	12	0	28	0
2010-11	3	0	0	0	0	0	-	-	3	0
2011-12	0	0	0	0	0	0	4	0	4	0
Total	15	0	3	0	1	0	16	0	35	0

Disciplinary

Season
2009-10	0	0
2010-11	0	0
2011-12	0	0
Total	0	0

Fulham Matches

#

Season

Date

Comp

Opposition

Venue

Result

Score

Additional Information

External links and references