Erling Haaland scored twice on his World Cup debut as Norway got their campaign off to a flying start with a 4-1 over a valiant Iraqi side, who were playing on football’s biggest stage for the first time in half a century.
Both nations were back on the global stage for the first time this century and it was a man that entered with a tick over a half century of international goals, Erling Haaland, who handed Norway the early advantage.
A move that began with goalkeeper Orjan Nyland cycled through 14 passes before David Moller Wolfe delivered a cross from the left that Haaland slid in to poke home at the back post.
Ten minutes later, veteran forward Aymen Hussein became just the second Iraqi player to score a World Cup goal as he rose to meet Amir Al Ammari’s chipped cross and plant a header past Nyland.
Haaland then pounced on a mix-up between Zaid Tahseen and Jalal Hassan to restore Norway’s advantage and send them to the break with a lead for the first team at a World Cup.
Substitute Leo Ostigard, three-and-a-half minutes after his second-half arrival, extended the lead as he was left all alone at a corner to stride towards goal and power a header past Hassan. A late Hussein own goal saw Norway complete an ultimately comfortable win to move to the head of the Group I standings.
