There are some who have already grown used to Norway’s new normal. Take last month’s Champions League clash between Manchester City and RB Leipzig, when Erling Haaland netted five goals and broke another European record.
The verdict of Norway manager Stale Solbakken? ‘I’ve seen it before,’ he joked to Mail Sport the following day. Another senior figure in Norwegian football was equally nonplussed: a typical Tuesday, they laughed.
Now just another Wednesday awaits as Arsenal – led by Martin Odegaard – visit Haaland’s Manchester City in the biggest game of this Premier League season. The Golden Boot is already safely in Norwegian hands.
The Premier League trophy could soon be, too. Not bad for a nation of 5.5million people, where Odegaard and Haaland have been spearheading a revolution. Just over a decade ago, after years of struggle, Norway revamped its football culture.
The country’s domestic league now outperforms its Nordic rivals, Norway sends more players to Europe’s top clubs and, under Solbakken, Odegaard (captain) and Haaland (vice-captain) are leading their pursuit of Euro 2024 – a long-held target after two and a half decades in the international wilderness.
Erling Haaland (pictured) netting five in a Champions League game is Norway’s new normal
Haaland’s Manchester City and Martin Odegaard’s (No 8) Arsenal face off on Wednesday night in the most important game of the entire domestic season
The superstar duo are spearheading a footballing revolution in the country of just 5.5million
Last June, after Haaland’s double secured Norway’s first win in Sweden since 1977, Odegaard put on ‘The Haaland Song’ in the dressing room and Solbakken squad serenaded their matchwinner. ‘I’ve not really seen that before,’ says one observer. ‘You don’t do that if you don’t like him very much.’ This success trickles down.
‘Kids in school now run around with Norwegian names on their shirts,’ says Leif Overland, the chief executive of the Norwegian Professional Football League. ‘They didn’t do that before.’ Overland was there when Odegaard made his league debut aged just 15.
He remembers Haaland’s Eliteserien bow, too, when the 17-year-old scored four for Molde. By then, Norway was already in the midst of change.
Norsk Toppfotball – an ‘interest organisation’ for teams in Norway’s top two divisions – had helped alter the country’s football foundations. The spark? ‘We were so bad,’ Overland says.
Inspiration came from across Europe. ‘We…