Erling Haaland pulls out of Norway squad with injury

Erling Haaland will not feature for Norway during their Euro qualifiers this month with an injury. The superstar striker picked up a seemingly minor groin knock during Manchester City’s FA Cup match with Burnley. Haaland scored a hat trick for the club before being substituted after 63 minutes. The reigning Premier League champs won the game on Sunday 6-0.

Norway team doctor Ola Sand confirmed the setback on Tuesday.

“After doing tests and examinations yesterday it became clear that he will not make it for the games against Spain and Georgia,” claimed Sand. “It is better that he receives medical follow-up at his club.”

Striker is scoring for fun at City

Haaland is currently in the midst of an historic season. The 22-year-old forward has racked up an incredible 42 goals in just 36 total games for City. He has already broken the club’s Premier League season goal record for a 38-game season. Now, he is just four goals behind Mohamed Salah’s modern Premier League record of 32 goals in a campaign. City have 11 top flight matches remaining on the schedule.

In the Champions League, he tied a record with five goals in one game as City pounded RB Leipzig, 7-0.

Norway head coach Stale Solbakken revealed that Haaland was disappointed with the injury. “Erling took it hard when he realized that he could not fight for the team,” said Solbakken. “Fortunately, there is still plenty of self-confidence, talent, and cohesion in this group to win points in the next matches.”

Injury forces Haaland out of Norway squad, where is in form, too

Haaland has equally performed well for his country compared to his club. In fact, the striker already has 21 career goals in just 23 appearances for the senior Norway team. He previously made his national team debut in September of 2019 and needed just three games to net his first goal. Haaland and Arsenal playmaker Martin Odegaard have formed a potent partnership for Norway.

Nevertheless, the Scandinavian side will now face a tough Spanish team without their star striker. Norway travel to Malaga to face Spain on March 25th. They will then have to make the trip to Georgia three days later. The upcoming fixtures are the first round of games for the Euro 2024 qualification process.

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