The Norwegian national team beat Estonia to pretty much seal its pass to the 2026 World Cup. Erling Haaland scored two goals but Norway’s happiness directly affects Italy, whose World Cup dreams might shatter.
Norway scored four goals in 12 minutes in what was an absolute avalanche against Estonia. Yes, Haaland scored twice, but also Alexander Sorloth scored twice in in three minutes. It was a relentless effort early in the second half.
With the win, Norway rise to 21 points but the key part is the goal difference. For Italy (15 points) to win Group I of the World Cup qualifiers, they must win against Moldova, and then win against Norway too, but the goal difference is so huge in favor of Norway, that even if Italy beat them, it would have to be by a landslide.
Haaland is synonym of goals
Erling Haaland is a force of nature. The goal-scoring machine creates damage just by stepping near the opposing boxes. Per Fabrizio Romano, Haaland has 53 goals in 47 games with Norway.
It’s been 27 years since Norway last played in a World Cup. They needed the help from a generational talent to pretty much secure their spot in the next one. As it stands, only a disaster could prevent Norway from attending the 2026 World Cup.
see also
What happens if Italy win, tie or lose vs Moldova in the UEFA 2026 World Cup Qualifiers?
Italy’s World Cup dreams are in serious danger
Italy lost to Norway in the first match of the qualifiers and have been perfect ever since. However, so have Norway, who have also scored 33 goals in seven games to Italy’s 18 goals in six games.
Italy won the World Cup in 2006 and it’s been a steep decline since then. The 2010 and 2014 World Cups saw them get eliminated in the group phase. After that, they missed the 2018 and 2022 World Cups. For a team that won four World Cups, missing three straight is as deep a crisis as it can have.
