Norway celebrated its qualification to the round of 16 of the 2026 World Cup in style, but Erling Haaland preferred to tone down the euphoria. After scoring the winning goal 2-1 over Ivory Coast in the round of 32, the Manchester City striker left a phrase that quickly went around the world.
“Small possibilities. Playing against Brazil in the round of 16 is something we are going to have to face”said the Norwegian striker at the end of the game.
With those words, Haaland recognized the enormous challenge of facing the five-time world champion, in a duel scheduled for Sunday, July 5at 2:00 p.m. Guatemala time (4:00 p.m. Eastern time)in it New York New Jersey Stadium (MetLife Stadium)in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
The attacker was the hero of the Norwegian qualification by scoring the winning goal in the final minutes against the Ivory Coast, a result that allowed Ståle Solbakken’s team to return to the round of 16 of a World Cup for the first time since France 1998. Despite the moment of euphoria, Haaland insisted on maintaining caution.
“Now we are going to the round of 16. There will be excellent teams and it will not be easy. It will be difficult to advance. I don’t know if we are going to achieve it. We have prepared a lot and we remain very prepared”he explained after being declared the best player of the match (MVP).
The forward, who already adds five goals In the 2026 World Cup, he has been Norway’s great offensive reference and one of the top scorers of the tournament. However, he avoided falling into excess of confidence before facing a Brazilian team that arrives as one of the great candidates for the title.
The crossing will also have a historical component. Brazil and Norway met for the last time in a World Cup in the group stage of France 1998, when the Scandinavians surprised by winning 2-1 in one of the biggest surprises of that edition. Twenty-eight years later, both will cross paths again, now with a ticket to the quarterfinals at stake.
Brazil faces the commitment backed by the talent of players such as Vinícius Júnior, Matheus Cunha and Gabriel Martinelli, in addition to a squad with extensive experience in decisive instances. Norway, for its part, is betting on Haaland’s collective strength and scoring power to try to prolong its historic campaign.
The match promises one of the most attractive confrontations of the round of 16: the highest benchmark in Norwegian football against a team seeking to win its sixth world title. Haaland has already made it clear that the challenge will be enormous, but also that Norway arrives convinced of competing until the end.