Norway pin hopes on Haaland to face Brazil in World Cup

Norway have pinned all their hopes on their star striker Erling Haaland as they face Brazil in the World Cup round of 16. Haaland, who has torn apart defensive lines so far and is regarded as the team's talisman, is expected to be at his ruthless best in the crucial match on Sunday. Having scored a late goal against Ivory Coast to give Norway their first win in the tournament and embellish their return to the world stage after 28 years, Haaland remains the team's biggest weapon. Now, Norway dream of repeating their famous group stage win from 1998 to eliminate the five-time world champions Brazil and reach the quarter-finals.

While the star player notes the difficulty of the match and their slim chances, history gives Norway morale. The two teams have met four times previously, and in those matches, Norway recorded two wins and two draws against Brazil, never losing. Manager Stale Solbakken, who was part of the squad that beat Brazil 2-1 about thirty years ago to make a name for themselves on the world stage, knows the importance of this match well. Solbakken acknowledges Brazil are the favorites but emphasizes they are not just playing for entertainment; they are on the pitch to win and reach the quarter-finals. The experienced manager states winning is difficult but possible, adding that he has the world's best scorer at his disposal.

Manchester City star Haaland is charting an incredible form graph, scoring in his last 13 official international matches and finding the net 25 times in the process. Team captain Martin Odegaard states that having Haaland in the team is an incredible chance and they will do their best to feed him goals, while on the Brazil side, Vinicius Junior shines. The Brazilian star, who is the team's top scorer with four goals in the tournament and an effective performance, became the first Brazilian to score in every group stage match since Ronaldo and Rivaldo in 2002. Manager Solbakken jokingly says they considered a 7-3-0 formation to stop Vinicius, but is also aware that the task is far from easy.

Norway goalkeeper Orjan Nyland knows Vinicius' threat very well from his time wearing the Sevilla jersey in La Liga. However, thanks to their performance over the last three years and strong play in the qualifiers, they believe they can stop anyone. In the Brazil camp, Carlo Ancelotti's proven championship history fuels hope of taking the team back to the summit. Brazil, who passed the round of 32 against Japan with a last-second goal by Gabriel Martinelli, came from behind to win in World Cup qualifiers for the first time since 2002. Players state that Ancelotti's calmness at half-time instilled confidence in them and made the comeback possible.

Brazil has struggled a bit against European teams in World Cup knockout rounds in recent years, failing to win a knockout match against European opponents in the last five tournaments. Eliminated by Czech Republic on penalties in the last tournament, Brazil this time did special work in training against Norway's aerial threat. Manchester United's Matheus Cunha warns that focusing only on Haaland would be a mistake and that Norway is a very strong physical team overall. Lucas Paqueta being unable to play due to a hamstring injury and the possibility of Raphinha returning to training to be included in the squad stand out as last-minute developments for the technical staff.