Erling Haaland shines with a hat-trick despite missing two penalties
Manchester City’s star striker, Erling Haaland, had a bittersweet day with the Norwegian national team in their World Cup qualifying match against Israel. Despite missing two penalties, the goalscorer managed to score a hat-trick, contributing to his team’s 5-0 victory.The first penalty, taken by Haaland, was saved by goalkeeper Daniel Peretz. However, the referee ordered it to be retaken because the goalkeeper moved forward. In the second attempt, Haaland tried a shot to the corner, but Peretz guessed the direction and stopped the ball again, leaving the Norwegian striker visibly surprised.
Haaland later redeemed himself in the first half, scoring a goal after receiving a pass from Alexander Sørloth. This was his tenth goal in the qualifying campaign. The Norwegian striker continued his goal-scoring streak, scoring two more goals to total 12, becoming the top scorer in the UEFA rankings by a wide margin. In addition, this season, Haaland has scored 12 goals in nine games with City, raising his total to 136 goals in 155 games with the club. Haaland’s hat-trick raised his goal total with the Norwegian national team to 51, solidifying his position as the country’s all-time leading scorer. He reached 50 goals in just 46 matches. The victory keeps Norway undefeated in the standings, with six wins in six matches. They lead Group I with a nine-point advantage over Italy, although the Italians still have the possibility of reaching first place and obtaining a direct pass to next summer’s World Cup. Norway has not participated in a World Cup since 1998. Before the match in Oslo, peaceful pro-Palestinian protests took place. The police formed a cordon near the stadium, at a safe distance from the demonstrators, some of whom chanted “Close the embassy”, while others held up red cards and a woman displayed a small sign that read “Game over Israel”. A few dozen fans remained protesting outside the stadium once the match began. The stadium was almost full, with between 22,000 and 23,000 spectators. Capacity was reduced by 3,000 seats due to security measures, which made the seats near the Israeli fans and in the front row unavailable.
