FIFA World Cup: Criticism of captain Odegaard is rubbish and nonsense, say Norway players

June 19 (Reuters) - Norway's players have mounted a strong defence of captain Martin Odegaard following intense domestic media criticism of his performance in their opening match at the World Cup.

Odegaard struggled in the 4-1 win against Iraq on Tuesday, appearing off the pace and failing to produce his usual creative fluency. He did, however, provide the assist for Leo Ostigard to head in Norway's third goal before being substituted nine minutes from time.

Norwegian commentators rated the midfielder poorly, with television pundits pointing to recent injury struggles, but his teammates strongly defended the Arsenal player ahead of their match against Senegal.

"It is nonsense," defender David Moller Wolfe told Norwegian TV2. "He is one of our most important players and one of the best Norwegian footballers of all time. We know how important he has been over a very long period."

Winger Jens Petter Hauge said the squad remained unfazed by the media scrutiny and midfielder Kristian Thorstvedt dismissed the criticism as "rubbish", emphasising Odegaard's vital leadership role on and off the pitch.

Norway's player liaison officer Brede Hangeland acknowledged that the team had room for individual improvement.

"I think many players felt after the Iraq game that they had more to give individually, and I think Martin would be completely honest about that too," Hangeland said. "We expect that we will look stronger both individually and collectively in the next match."

Norway play Senegal on Tuesday and France on June 26.