Haaland speaks frankly about three issues following Norway's loss to England and their exit from the 2026 World Cup, specifically highlighting one individual.
On 12 July 2026 GMT+7, Erling Haaland, Norway's national team striker, gave an interview after the 2026 World Cup quarterfinal match in which Norway lost 1-2 to England in extra time, ending their journey in the tournament.
Although Norway questioned a controversial moment before conceding the equalizer at 1-1 to England—when Erjan Neland's set-piece struck the Spidercam cable causing the ball's trajectory to change—Erling Haaland still congratulated the "Three Lions."
Additionally, Haaland praised Jude Bellingham, a Real Madrid player and former Borussia Dortmund teammate, who scored both goals that helped England advance to the 2026 World Cup semifinals to face Argentina, who are chasing their second world title since 1966.
The Manchester City striker admitted he didn't understand the criticism of Jude Bellingham's role in the England squad before the 2026 World Cup, saying, "I'm not surprised he scored twice today and performed so brilliantly."
"The only thing I feel is that sometimes he is overly criticized just because he doesn't score enough goals or something like that. I think he doesn't deserve such criticism because he's one of the best players in the world. He's a midfielder who also scores and dribbles past every opponent on the pitch."
"Only praise for Jude. I think he's an amazing player. Both England and Real Madrid are lucky to have him because everyone would want a player like Jude on their team."
Haaland was also unbothered by Norway having a goal by Torbjørn Heggem disallowed in the 55th minute after VAR ruled he pushed Elliott Anderson, a future Manchester City teammate, before a corner kick.
"Usually, the better team—here, England—based on player quality and other factors, tends to benefit from decisions like this. When I play for Manchester City, similar situations often go my way as well."
Erling Haaland concluded by expressing hope that England can win the 2026 World Cup since he was born in Leeds: "Of course, I want England to do well. I think when I was a kid, I had an England national team jersey before I had a Norway one."
"Certainly, I want England to succeed because it's a great country to live in and their national team jersey looks good too."
