The dark horses of the tournament have reached the quarter-finals but can play without the weight of expectation
All the pressure in the world will be on England when they face Norway in their quarter-final tie, or at least Erling Haaland wants it to be so.
Norway themselves are indeed a very good side, always one of the dark horses right from the start of the tournament. Their victory over Brazil and run to the quarter-finals may have appeared as a surprise to many, but certainly not to this observer here, and not to a lot of supporters who saw their potential, despite this being only their first World Cup appearance since 1998.
Haaland himself is a massive advantage for the Scandinavians. One of the best in the world and certainly at this tournament, he has scored seven goals in four matches to compete directly with two of the competition’s greats in Kylian Mbappe and Lionel Messi. He scored two right at the end in the victory over Brazil.
But he also knows that England are heavily invested in winning this trophy. They have a manager who was brought in from a foreign country specifically to win it. Their fans are desperate for some success on the international stage. Their players have been hyped to bloating point in the media thanks to the success of the Premier League. Can all that play out to Norway’s advantage? “Yeah, definitely,” said Haaland.
Finishing with Erling & Leo😂 pic.twitter.com/7I2Hi6sdDQ
— Fotballandslaget (@nff_landslag) July 10, 2026
Just 0.5%. That was the chance that Haaland gave Norway of winning the tournament before it began, and many would have agreed that the assessment was about right. Now they are in the quarter-finals, one of the last eight teams, with only three wins between them and glory. Surely the odds are creeping up?
“Really low still,” Haaland said. “I think there are some clear favourites out there.” And then in his typical humorous style, he added: “England are one of them, so I think all of you [the media] should put every single pressure on the English lads.”
It is difficult to find any football fan who hates Haaland. Indicate if you do. This is a guy who embodies joy and fun and entertainment. Haaland is a jolly good fellow. You want Erling Haaland to hug you. Even when he is destroying your team, you shake your head in exasperation but you also marvel at his skill, how easy he makes the game, his wry humour afterwards. Statements like the above are a good example of that fun-loving nature, but away from the light-hearted side, the Norway striker is also impressed by his side’s performance so far.
“I didn’t expect this at all,” Haaland said. “Even before the first game I didn’t expect it, and now I didn’t expect it. To be honest, to be in the quarter-finals with Norway in the World Cup, it’s quite surprising even for me.
“Playing against Brazil was kind of crazy for us Norwegians and to win against Brazil, then go and play England in a quarter-final in the USA, is quite special. And I think if you watch the scenes back in Norway, this is not normal for Norway to be here.” You could back that run to continue against England.
