June 17, (THEWILL) — Erling Haaland marked his FIFA World Cup debut in spectacular fashion with a brace as Norway powered to a convincing 4-1 victory over Iraq in their Group I opener at Boston Stadium on Tuesday.
The Manchester City striker delivered a clinical display, scoring twice in the first half to set Norway on course for an impressive start to their campaign.
Norway had dominated possession and looked the more threatening side before finally making the breakthrough in the 29th minute. David Møller Wolfe burst into the penalty area from the left and delivered a low cross that Haaland calmly converted at the far post.
Despite struggling to create meaningful opportunities, Iraq found a way back into the contest ten minutes later. A swift counterattack caught the Norwegian defence off guard, with Ali Jasim releasing Amir Al-Ammari, whose inviting delivery was expertly headed home by Aymen Hussein.
The celebrations were short-lived.
Just four minutes after Iraq restored parity, Haaland struck again, finishing off another well-worked Norwegian move to hand his side a 2-1 advantage heading into the interval.
Iraq emerged after the break with renewed determination and briefly threatened to level the scores. However, Norway’s superior quality eventually told.
With 14 minutes remaining, captain Martin Ødegaard delivered a pinpoint corner kick that was met by defender Leo Østigård, who rose above the Iraqi defence to head home Norway’s third goal and effectively end the contest.
Haaland came close to completing a memorable hat-trick late on, but Iraq goalkeeper Hassan produced a fine save from close range to deny the prolific striker.
Norway would still add a fourth goal deep into stoppage time when Hussein inadvertently turned the ball into his own net while attempting to clear a dangerous cross.
The emphatic victory places Norway in a strong position in Group I and underlines their growing credentials as potential dark horses in the tournament, with Haaland already proving he could be one of the stars of the competition.
Norway will now look to build on the momentum, while Iraq face an uphill task to keep their hopes of progression alive.
Olumide Atiba
