Haaland names Kane and Mbappe above himself after brace on World Cup debut

Erling Haaland opened his World Cup account with a brace in Norway’s 4-1 victory over Iraq, then promptly refused to accept the title of the world’s best striker — pointing instead to Harry Kane and Kylian Mbappe as the men ahead of him.

The Manchester City forward, 25, was the decisive figure in Norway’s Group I opener, helping Stale Solbakken’s side recover after Aymen Hussein’s equaliser briefly levelled the contest. Haaland’s double, combined with goals from Leo Ostigard and a Hussein own goal, sealed a comfortable win and pushed Haaland’s extraordinary international record to 57 goals in 51 caps.

Despite winning a second Premier League Golden Boot this season with 28 league goals, Haaland was quick to contextualise his standing when reporters raised the question of his global status.

“I would say I’m up there [with the best]. I don’t think I scored the most goals this season,” he said after the final whistle. “So statistically, no I’m not — because Harry Kane and Mbappe scored more goals than me and that’s the reality.”

On his own display, Haaland kept his assessment measured: “I think today you saw the same energy. But when I think about how I played today, I played in the same way. It’s all about continuing and not saying too much. It’s difficult at this stage — focus on the next [game] and of course you’re happy, but stay calm.”

Norway will secure their place in the knockout rounds if they avoid defeat against Senegal on Tuesday, 23 June, before a final group-stage meeting with France on Friday, 26 June.

Haaland’s double arrived on the same day Mbappe surpassed Olivier Giroud as France’s all-time record goalscorer, netting his 57th and 58th international goals — in 99 caps — during a 3-1 win over Senegal. The Real Madrid forward was effusive about the milestone.

“I’m very happy to make more history for my country,” Mbappe said. “It’s always something I’ve wanted to do. I’ve always placed that above everything else. Right now, I know why I’m here. We will keep trying to write the grand page of the history of the French team.”

With Kane also among the leading scorers in Europe this season, the debate over the world’s premier striker shows no sign of resolution — though Haaland, at least, appears content to let the goals do the talking rather than the rhetoric.