Ragnvald Soma

Ragnvald Soma (born 10 November 1979) is a Norwegian footballer who plays as a defender for his childhood club Frøyland Idrettslag. He signed for them 02.02.2014 effectively retiring from professional football.

Position

He is primarily a central defender, although he has been both a left back and a defensive midfielder earlier in his career.

Club career

Early career

Soma started his professional career in Bryne FK, amassing 99 league games.

West Ham United

In January 2001 he moved to English Premier League club West Ham United for £800,000. His stay there lasted just over one and a half years, during which Soma made only seven league appearances before returning to Bryne on a free transfer. Whilst at West Ham he played in their 1–0 victory over Manchester United at Old Trafford in the 2000–01 FA Cup, coming on as a late substitute for his debut.

Norwegian football

With Bryne relegated at the end of the 2003 season, Soma moved to SK Brann. He became an instant hit, being voted player of the year by several newspapers and becoming a regular in the Norway national team squad. In March 2006 he transferred to Viking for an undisclosed fee believed to be around £500,000, with Brann also getting right back Bjørn Dahl as a part-exchange.

Austria and Denmark

After over three years at Viking, Soma signed for Rapid Vienna on 14 August 2009.

After a spell with the Danish Superliga side Nordsjælland, Soma joined the Danish 1st Division side Lyngby. After his contract with Lyngby expired, he was training with his old club Viking. He played the second half of 2013 for Førde IL.

International career

Soma played 22 matches for the Norwegian under-21 team before he was capped five times while playing for Norway between 2004 and 2005.

Career statistics