Aalesund started the season on the back foot and it quickly became clear that the team will struggle at the bottom end of the table. There was clear lack of creativity in midfield while the defence was getting stretched and lacking pace as they suffered some very emphatic beatings that damaged confidence badly. Indeed, the team in Orange suffered seven losses in a stretch of nine games early in the season, even if they actually hammered Tromsø for a 6:0 win during that run. One of the major issues for Trond Fredriksen early in the campaign was the presence of club legend John Arne Riise and the obligation that was felt about him being a constant starter. While he was struggling to play in defence, the manager was forced to shoe-horn in midfield where he was very ineffective too. It was almost like the team playing with ten men and results remained very worrying after the summer break, with three losses in four games and conceding four, four, and six goals respectively in these losses. But the club stuck with Fredriksen during the darkest of days, after that 6:0 loss away at Brann, and their confidence was rewarded as performances and results started to slowly improve. A few changes in the squad, with John Arne Riise leaving and Vito Wormgoor bolstering the defence, proved crucial. There was also the crucial factor of players realising their responsibility and starting to play with a lot more energy and attacking drive. Mostafa Abdellaoue enjoyed a brilliant run of form up front while Edwin Gyasi and Aaron Trándarson provided great service from the wings. Results really took a turn for the better from September onwards as emphatic wins over Start and Strømsgodset lifted the team over the bottom three for a first time in a while. The momentum was maintained and a couple more wins on the bounce pretty much secured safety just like that, only a month after it seemed like Aalesund are in for a real struggle until the end. Indeed, they finished the season as the side in best form in the county as seven wins and a draw from the last eight games ensured a finish in mid-table, which belies the major struggles they had for most of the campaign. But Fredriksen showed the ability to correct his own mistakes and, if Aalesund carry on the good work from the back end of this season, they may well be more of a factor in the upper end of the table next season.
