Norway’s First Team Would’ve Lost Against France – Haaland

Manchester City striker Erling Haaland has defended Stale Solbakken’s controversial decision to rest several key players in Norway’s heavy defeat to France. He recently had his say while speaking to the press, and fans have been reacting.

Insisting that the result would not have changed if the key players started, Haaland noted that the rotation policy leaves Norway in a stronger position for the knockout stages.

Erling concluded by saying that France’s depth of talent makes them automatic favourites to win the 2026 World Cup.

His words, “I said beforehand that I don’t care, and that is still the case.

France was the better team anyway. Even with our strongest 11, I don’t think we could have beaten them.

France has world-class players everywhere. [Kylian] Mbappe, [Michael] Olise, [Ousmane] Dembele… they just keep coming.

They will pose a problem for any team and I honestly think they can go very far. What they showed against us was terrifying.”

WOW.

Erling Braut Haaland is a Norwegian professional footballer who plays as a striker for Premier League club Manchester City and the Norway national team. Considered one of the best players in the world, he is known for his speed, strength, positioning, and finishing inside the box. Haaland holds the record for the most goals scored by a player in a single Premier League season, with 36.

Haaland was born on 21 July 2000 in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, as his father Alfie Haaland was playing for Leeds United in the Premier League at the time. In 2004, at the age of three, he moved to Bryne, his parents’ hometown in Norway.

Along with playing football from an early age, Haaland took part in various other sports as a child, including handball, golf, and track and field. He also reportedly achieved a world record in his age category for the standing long jump when he was five, with a recorded distance of 1.63 metres in 2006.