AB looks ahead to the match against AaB

AB Gladsaxe returns to Betinia Liga action at Gladsaxe Stadion when AaB visits tomorrow, Saturday, September 5, 2026, at 14:00.

Looking back

We have to go all the way back to May 2, 2004, in the Danish Superliga to find the last match between the two teams.

The match was played at Aalborg Portland Park, where AB lost 3–1. AaB's goals were scored by two prominent AaB players: Christian Lundberg, who scored twice, and David Nielsen, who added one. AB's goal was scored by fan favorite Yaro Yaro. That same year, AB was relegated from the Superliga.

In the 1998/99 Danish Cup, AB and AaB fought their way to the final. AB fielded one of the strongest teams of that era, featuring the likes of Jan Hoffman, René Henriksen, Jan Michaelsen, Jan Bjur, Peter Rasmussen, Brian Steen, Jesper Falck, Alex Nielsen and Chris Hermansen.

AaB's team included Jimmy Nielsen, Brian Priske, Søren Frederiksen, Allan Gaarde and Ståle Solbakken.

A crowd of 25,113 watched a memorable and atmospheric cup final at Parken, where AB won 2–1 thanks to goals from Alex Nielsen and Chris Hermansen.

The upcoming match: AB vs. AaB

AaB has not started the season as strongly as they would have hoped in their pursuit of a return to the 3F Superliga. Ahead of Matchday 7, AaB sits in the table with eight points and most recently played out a 0–0 draw at home in Aalborg against HB Køge.

Every match is important, but from AaB's perspective, the match against AB must be particularly significant given their start to the season, which has also included a cup exit. AB should therefore expect an AaB side that will come with everything they have.

AB comes into the match following a 2–1 defeat away to Kolding IF last weekend. It was a match in which AB got off to a poor start and AB trailed 2–0 at halftime. After the break, things improved significantly, with AB pulling a goal back and eventually pushing Kolding deep into their own half during the closing stages.

The previous match against Hvidovre IF also began with Hvidovre dominating and taking a 1–0 lead into halftime. The second half was much better, with AB growing into the game and eventually finding a late equalizer.

Against AaB, AB will therefore need to bring plenty of energy, determination and fight—and be completely ready from the opening whistle. Ahead of Matchday 8, AB sits in the table with six points.

Marco Vesterholm says the players will bring plenty of energy:

“I think it will be a great experience. AaB hasn't had the best start, so they'll come out firing on all cylinders. They need points just like we do. So I think it will be an exciting and good match.

The last few matches haven't been ideal, especially against Kolding, but now we're back at home and that should help us. It's mainly about getting into the duels and building momentum.

Instead of running around a little on the sidelines, we need to be physical with them so we can at least stop their build-up play and get the momentum on our side. AaB are really good on the ball, so hopefully we can get them playing and then win the ball from them and counterattack. We need to do that both when we win the ball high up the pitch and when we're sitting a little deeper.

They also have some good players, so it's about supporting each other, fighting in every duel and winning some of those 50/50 balls that we've lost far too many of against Hvidovre and Kolding.

There was a bit of a bad atmosphere after the Kolding match, especially on the bus ride home and the following day. Then we got the match out of our system, and it was important to say that now we have to move on. It wasn't good enough against Kolding, but we can't do anything about it now, so we just have to focus on doing much better against AaB.

That will also be necessary because they have a good team, and many of our players grew up watching AaB play in the Superliga. So we'll come out with plenty of energy because it will be fun to play against them,” concludes Marco Vesterholm.

Head coach Fannar Berg Gunnólfsson is looking forward to seeing a strong attitude from his players:

“AaB has many really good footballers, and they are fantastic on the ball. It's a big club with a clear identity and a clear idea of what they want to do. We've previously seen how they have played with a deep defensive line and long balls forward to their attackers. More recently, we've seen a team that wants to hold its positions and play a lot through midfield. It will be interesting to see how our press works against them.

They started well in their first few matches, but the last few games haven't gone well for them. So with the pressure they're under and the disappointing period they've had, they'll come with everything they have and fight hard for a win.

That's what we expect to face tomorrow. Fundamentally, we have our style of play, our values and our identity, and we will continue to play our game.

We haven't been satisfied with our first halves in the last two matches, and of course we've worked on that. I have no concerns that the players won't come out firing. They'll be ready from the first minute, and they can't become disappointed if things don't immediately go their way. They need to fight throughout the entire match with a good and strong attitude tomorrow,” concludes Fannar Berg Gunnólfsson.

The exciting match will be officiated by Mathias Lykke, assisted on the sidelines by Shpend Shala and Iman Huseen Umar. Sebastian Aagerup will serve as the fourth official.

AB head coach Fannar Berg Gunnólfsson will have to watch the match from the stands after receiving a red card in the match against Kolding IF. He was subsequently handed a two-match suspension.