Egil Olsen has lambasted Norwegian international Erling Haaland for his inability to score against Kazakhstan.
Olaen branded the striker’s performance as “one of the worst things” he’s seen, as Norway played out a 0-0 draw with Kazakhstan.
Haaland started as the arrowhead for Norway as they traveled to Kazakhstan for their UEFA Nations League fixture on Friday, September 6, 2024.
Norway also had the services of Arsenal’s Martín Odegaard, alongside electric RB Leipzig winger Antonio Nusa and Alexander Sorloth of Atletico Madrid in their line-up.
Despite the top stars at their disposal, they were unable to break down Kazakhstan, with the match ending in a goalless draw as aforementioned.
Ståle Solbakken’s side dominated the game, registering 19 shots in total and boasting a huge 71 percent of possession.
However, just 2 of Norway’s shots were on target as Erling Haaland had a bad day in the office on Friday, September 6, 2024.
Egil Olsen Lambasts Erling Haaland For Blanking Against Kazakhstan
Speaking to TV2, former Norway and Wimbledon manager Egil Olsen was brash in delivering his assessment of how Haaland had played and reserved some criticism for Odegaard, too.
Olsen expressed that Norway has “two world-class players” in the club, but against Kazakhstan, Haaland performed below expectations.
He said: “We have two world-class players in the team. Today, Erling Braut Haaland was, unfortunately, far below par.
“It’s one of the worst things I’ve seen from Haaland. Martin Odegaard flashes at times, but I have also seen him.”
Slovenia and Austria are also housed in Group 3 of the UEFA Nations League B, alongside Kazakhstan and Norway.
Egil Olsen added that no other team in Group 3 of the UEFA Nations League B, aside from Norway, would drop points to Kazakhstan.
The 82-year-old shared: “There are no other teams in this group that will concede points to Kazakhstan.”
Interestingly, Norway’s fellow challengers in the third group of UEFA Nations League B also drew, as Austria’s clash with Slovenia ended in a 1-1 draw.
Norway
The Lions will return to action on September 9, 2024, when they trade tackles with Austria, who made it to the last 16 at Euro 2024 and are handled by Ralf Ragnick.
The Norwegian men’s national team last qualified for a major tournament back in 2000, where they failed to make it past the group phase of the UEFA European Championship hosted by Belgium and the Netherlands.
Erling Haaland
Haaland will be looking forward to the game against Austria to improve his international goal tally, as he’s just two goals away from equaling Jorgen Juve as Norway’s all-time top goalscorer.
Juve scored 33 goals from 45 caps when he represented Norway between 1928 to 1937, while Haaland has netted 31 goals in 34 games, producing an average of 0.91 goals per match.
Erling Haaland’s no show against Kazakhstan is in stark contrast to how he has begun the 2024/25 campaign for Manchester City.
The ex-Borussia Dortmund man has scored a staggering 7 goals after 3 matches, having bagged consecutive hat-tricks against Ipswich Town and West Ham United respectively.
Haaland was also on target for the Cityzens in their 2-0 victory over Chelsea in their first Premier League game of the 2024/25 season.
