FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (AP) — Norway will go all the way on this one. world cup Erling Haaland takes it that way.
In his tournament debut, he showed he was more than up to the challenge.
Haaland scored two goals, including one Due to defensive failure Norway beats Iraq 4-1 in Group I on Tuesday.
The Manchester City striker’s 56th and 57th international goals were Norway’s first appearance in the tournament since reaching the finals of the 1998 World Cup in France, two years before Haaland was born.
Haaland said he would do his best to live up to the expectations he created with this performance.
“Of course I’ll try,” Haaland said. “It’s important to keep going and not think too much. It’s difficult at this stage. But I’ll focus on the next game and of course I’ll be happy. But stay calm.”
Norway coach Starre Solbakken said he felt he was ready after seeing how loose Haaland was in the team’s final training session before the match.
“You could see that he rose to the occasion,” Solbakken said. “The opportunity was not too great for him.”
Leo Ostigard scored in the 76th minute from a corner kick from Martin Odegaard. Norway opened the scoring with an own goal by Iraqi forward Aymen Hussein just before the final whistle.
Hussein also scored a goal for his team, scoring the equalizer just nine minutes after Haaland’s opening goal.
Just before half-time, Haaland slipped in front of a poor backpass to Iraq goalkeeper Jalal Hassan to put the Norwegians ahead for good. Haaland beat Hassan to preempt the clearance and used his shin to push the ball into the back of the goal.
“That was one of those things. It actually happened,” Iraq national team coach Graham Arnold said. “That’s the way it is and we have to learn from it.”
Haaland’s first goal came in the 29th minute, when he received a cross into the box from David Moeller-Wolf. Haaland slid and scored with his right heel. This prompted a wave of cheers from the Norwegian supporters, who dominated the stands clad in red, and the match began in unison. viking column chanting.
Iraq, making their second appearance in the World Cup since their first appearance in 1986, put up a strong showing with most of their supporters concentrated behind the goal.
That energy allowed Iraq to temporarily get back into the game.
In the 38th minute, Amir Alanmari stole the ball on the baseline between the left corner and the goal and fired a cross into the front of the net. The ball evaded a Norwegian defender and Hussein headed it cleanly, but it bounced off the hands of diving goalkeeper Orjan Nyland, leveling the score at 1-1.
This was Hussein’s 34th international goal. This included the winning goal in Iraq’s final World Cup qualifier against Bolivia in April, giving the country the final spot in the 48-team field.
Iraq’s Hussein Ali said, “I’m proud to be back in the World Cup after 40 years. Losing 4-1 hurts.”
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AP World Cup: https://apnews.com/hub/fifa-world-cup
