His performances attracted the attention at FC Nürnberg and he joined the club from Franconia in the middle of the 1983/84 season. The coach back then, Heinz Höher, turned him into a central defender and full-back. After playing 20 games and experiencing relegation with FC Nürnberg, Anders moved under the Bayer Cross. At Leverkusen he secured an immediate berth at left back. When the new Bayer 04 coach Erich Ribbeck made little use of Anders in the first matches in the 1985/86 season, he rejoined FC Nürnberg.
Over the next three years he became a crowd favourite at Nürnberg and was seen as a role model thanks to his reliability, fairness and objectivity as a player and person. The quiet Norwegian rarely committed a foul to separate his opponents from the ball. His commitment and his quality away from the pitch were honoured in his homeland in 1986. Norwegian journalists voted him Norway's Footballer of the Year.
For the next three years he studied business administration alongside his career on the pitch. In 1986 he was named captain by the Nürnberg coach Heinz Höher and he helped the Franconian side secure a UEFA Cup place in 1987/88.
FC Köln came in for Anders in 1989. He played for the Goats for three years but was never really happy there despite finishing as runners-up in 1990 and reaching the DFB Pokal final in 1991.
He returned to Brann Bergen in 1992 but a protracted back injury prevented him playing football. So he first became sporting director and then assistant coach in Bergen. In 2005, he moved back behind the desk as sporting director at Sogndal IF. Today, the father of three children primarily develops and produces material for 'Giske defending'. He has already written a book on the subject and holds lectures.
Dear Anders, I wish you many happy returns on your 65th birthday. Stay healthy and have a good one.
