Ibrahimaj’s Late Strike Ignites Briskeby Arena as Ham-Kam Upsets Vålerenga, Reshaping the Eliteserien Survival Race
Under a canopy of autumn clouds in Hamar, Ham-Kam’s Briskeby Arena pulsed with rare energy Sunday afternoon, as Ylldren Ibrahimaj wrote himself into the season’s memory by firing home an 78th-minute winner that not only sank seventh-placed Vålerenga 2-1 but jolted the Eliteserien’s relegation battle wide open. For a side marooned in 13th place—a team that’s spent much of the autumn on the edge between hope and unease—Ham-Kam’s victory was a triumph in both spirit and substance, a statement that survival remains within their grasp when it matters most.
The match began with an urgency befitting its stakes. Ham-Kam, knowing the thin margin separating them from the drop zone, poured forward from the opening whistle. The Briskeby faithful, nourished by memories of that rousing 4-0 dismantling of Rosenborg three weeks before, leaned into every challenge, sensing that this was more than just another fixture; it was a chance to rewrite a season defined so far by frustration and missed chances.
Ham-Kam’s reward came swiftly. In the 22nd minute, a sweeping move pried open Vålerenga’s back line. The scorer’s identity was lost in the tumult, but what counted was the ball nestling in the net, sending home fans into delirium. The goal was emblematic of Ham-Kam’s recent upturn. Unbeaten in their last two, including a stirring cup demolition of Levanger and a hard-fought draw away to Fredrikstad, the hosts were playing with growing confidence and an unmistakable edge.
Vålerenga, by contrast, arrived in Hamar licking the wounds of a stuttering run—one win in their last five, with heavy defeats at Molde and the heartbreak of a cup exit to Fredrikstad. Though the Oslo club sits eighth in the table with 34 points from 24 matches, their recent form has shown cracks, especially when pressed by direct, energetic sides. Still, the visitors displayed their own resilience, snapping into tackles and probing for openings. Their equalizer came in the 60th minute, a cool finish after patient buildup. With the match knotted, Vålerenga began to dictate play, believing their superior league position would eventually translate into three vital points.
Yet this Ham-Kam side, rejuvenated by recent results and desperate for daylight in the standings, refused to wilt. Ibrahimaj, who has been a constant threat for Ham-Kam over the past month—his name on the scoresheet in three of their last five league contests—again proved the difference. Picking up the ball in a crowded area, he shrugged off defenders and fired low past the goalkeeper. The roar inside Briskeby was more than celebration; it was catharsis, the sound of a season suddenly tilting toward possibility.
The final whistle brought a rush of relief for the hosts, who now sit on 25 points from 24 games, still only 13th but crucially within touching distance of safety. For Ham-Kam, recent weeks have hinted at a team rediscovering its shape and spirit. Anton Ekeroth and Ibrahimaj have formed the backbone of their attacking resurgence, with goals against Levanger, Rosenborg, and Fredrikstad all contributing to a run that has stoked belief even as the margins remain thin.
Context matters in seasons shaped by stress. In their last five, Ham-Kam have taken seven points—a tally bettered only by the league’s frontrunners—while Vålerenga, once comfortably mid-table, have stumbled with just one win, exposing the thin veneer separating contenders from those drawn back into the pack. Historically, these head-to-heads have been tense affairs, with draws and narrow wins the rule rather than the exception. Today’s result, however, overturns form and expectation, as Ham-Kam seized both the narrative and the points.
For Vålerenga, this loss tightens the race for European places and risks complicating what had seemed a straightforward run-in. Now seventh with 34 points, their oscillating form threatens to derail loftier ambitions, a concern as fixtures grow scarce and the pack tightens behind them.
Both teams now face critical crossroads. Ham-Kam, energized by recent exploits, must convert momentum into consistency, knowing that survival is determined as much by fortitude as by flashes of brilliance. For Vålerenga, introspection beckons: is this simply a dip, or the start of a slide? The answer will be written in the weeks ahead, as the Eliteserien race enters its denouement, shaped as much by late heroics as by autumn’s gathering shadows.
As supporters melted into the twilight, Ibrahimaj’s raised fist in front of the home end offered a fitting image for Ham-Kam’s day—a reminder that, in football’s long season, hope can be rekindled in a single moment, on a Sunday that changed everything.