Morten Gamst Pedersen Bio Send To Friend  

Morten Gamst Pedersen joined Blackburn Rovers in the summer of 2004 from Norwegian club Tromso for £1.5million, rising to £2.5million dependant on appearances.

Graeme Souness, Rovers' then manager, spent months on the trail of Pedersen, who also attracted interest from Manchester United, Tottenham Hotspur and Aston Villa.

Rovers fans will surely thank their former manager for his efforts as Pedersen went on to become one of the club's star performers with a host of spectacular goals to his name.

At first Pedersen struggled to acclimatise to life in the Premiership and was not fully utilised by Mark Hughes when he replaced Souness in September 2004.

However by the start of 2005 the player was finding his top form, scoring against Cardiff City on his return to side and grabbing three more goals in his next three matches as he went on to confound the doubters by finishing the season as Rovers' second top scorer for the season with eight goals.

The 2005/06 season was a tremendous campaign for Pedersen as he established himself as the club' first choice left winger and began to be recognised for his wonderful array of long-range goals.

For many Rovers fans the highlight of his fledgling career with the Ewood Park club came in September 2005 when he scored both goals in a 2-1 victory against Manchester United at Old Trafford. He finished his breakthrough season with nine goals from 34 appearances.

Pedersen struggled to recapture his very best form in the 2006/07 season as he struggled with a rib injury which meant he was only able to play with the assistance of painkilling injections.

However, by the beginning of 2007 however the Norway international was again on top of his game, and eventually finished the season with six goals from 36 games.

In the 2007/08 season Pedersen racked up 32 league appearances, five of which as a substitute, and chimed in with four goals.

Ahead of the 2008/09 season Pedersen was signalled out ahead of Cristiano Ronaldo as the player new Chelsea full-back Jose Bosingwa is most relishing facing.