When Morten Thorsby talks about football and talks about his favorite position, you can tell how passionate the new signing from 1. FC Union is about what he is doing. He speaks at least as passionately about the topic of environmental protection, which is obviously very important to him.
Even the often drawn comparisons with climate activist Greta Thunberg do not bother him. “It’s not bad to be compared to Greta. I’ve taken a very clear stance on the environment,” says Thorsby, “not many players have done that. That might make me a little bit special.”
The 26-year-old has already settled in well with the Berliners, but still has some catching up to do with his teammates in terms of fitness. His trainer Urs Fischer sees it similarly, who on Thursday in the run-up to the Bundesliga duel with RB Leipzig on Saturday evening (6.30 p.m., Sky) in the usual manner did not elicit much, when asked about Thorsby’s personal details: “I think every training session he does , helps him to reach his limit.”
The Norwegian, who moved to Köpenick from the Italian Serie A club Sampdoria Genoa, made his debut at the weekend. “The twenty minutes in the game against Mainz did him good. He’s approaching his limit and I think that’s crucial,” said Fischer.
Before moving to Union, Thorsby spoke a lot to Union professional Julian Ryerson, who encouraged him to come to Berlin. “Everything I’ve heard and seen about Union before, everyone I’ve spoken to, has told me that my way of playing football and the club are a perfect match. And I was told that before I even had any contract talks with Union,” says Thorsby.
He likes the way Unions play, which is characterized by a lot of running work and high intensity and therefore suits him well. The Norwegian prefers to play in the eighth position because he has his strengths in the center. In principle, however, it can be used flexibly. “Sometimes I’m like a potato, I can be used anywhere,” Thorsby jokes.
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In the headquarters he has well-known competition in Rani Khedira, Genki Haraguchi and Janik Haberer, which it will be difficult to get past. Nevertheless, he wanted the challenge at Union to take “the next step in his career”.
If he develops positively there, it will also help him off the field, says Thorsby. Because even if his focus is on football and 1. FC Union, there are other topics off the pitch that he deals with. “It’s important to think about other things than just football,” says Thorsby.
[Climate protection in Berlin – always a topic in the district newsletters from the Tagesspiegel, order free of charge at tagesspiegel.de/bezirke]
Since he was 18, he has been dealing with issues such as environmental protection and climate change, and since the Paris Agreement of 2015 at the latest he has become increasingly involved. “The better I am at football, the more people listen to me. The more I can achieve.”
His new club also supports him in this regard: “We talked a lot about it and it’s very important to me that we have similar views.” He used to be laughed at for his activism, but now there are more and more players who also deal with it and want to do something. Thorsby would like to “gather” these players and try to show them ways in which they can take action. “It’s something that gives me energy,” he says. Energy that he could use in the duel with Leipzig on Saturday.
