Erling Haaland may have played for England at the 2026 World Cup, but fate has made him the leader of Norway and now it is the biggest threat to the "Three Lions" in the quarter-finals.
Born in Leeds when his father, Alfie Haaland, was still playing for Leeds United, Haaland qualified to wear the England national team jersey. However, after his family returned to Norway in 2003, he quickly joined Bryne's youth training system and successively wore the jerseys of Norwegian youth teams from 2015. When the English Football Federation began to pay attention, this striker was almost completely attached to Norwegian football.
Former England coach Gareth Southgate once admitted that the FA did not have many opportunities to persuade Haaland to change his nationality. The striker born in 2000 himself also affirmed that he is always proud to be Norwegian and has never seriously considered wearing the England national team jersey.
That choice is bringing unexpected results. Haaland scored 16 goals in the qualifiers, helping Norway participate in the World Cup for the first time in 28 years. In the finals, he continued to explode with 7 goals, making a great contribution to bringing the Northern European team to the quarterfinals for the first time.
It is noteworthy that Haaland achieved superior scoring performance even though playing in a team with much lower squad quality than the championship contenders. Before the tournament, Norway only ranked 31st in the FIFA rankings and was the lowest ranked team among the 8 teams in the quarter-finals.
Compared to Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappe or Harry Kane, Haaland touches the ball much less but creates an incredible effect. He only needs an average of 14.3 touches to score a goal, far exceeding Kane, Mbappe and Messi in this index. With 7 goals from 12 shots on target, the Manchester City striker also far exceeds the expected goal index (xG), showing his finishing ability to be among the best in the league.
Behind that explosive form is a thorough preparation process. Manchester City and coach Pep Guardiola once proactively reduced Haaland's burden in the late season to help him reach the best physical condition for the World Cup. Norway also created conditions for the 25-year-old striker to rest during the FIFA Days in March instead of playing continuously.
Outside of the football field, Haaland is famous for his scientific lifestyle. He strictly adheres to nutrition, uses ice baths, saunas, red light therapy, and wears blue light filters before going to bed to optimize the recovery process. He starts each day with a cup of collagen-filled coffee, a protein-rich breakfast and a light walk.
After three seasons scoring 162 goals in 198 matches for Man City and 62 goals in 54 appearances for the Norwegian national team, Haaland continues to affirm his position as one of the most complete strikers in the world.
In the quarter-finals of the 2026 World Cup, England clearly understands the challenges ahead. Marc Guehi, John Stones or Nico O'Reilly have faced Haaland many times in the Premier League and in Man City's training sessions. However, stopping the Norwegian striker is still an extremely difficult task, because just a moment of carelessness, he is capable of deciding the whole match.
