Haaland substituted in extra time as Norway trail England in World Cup quarter-final

Erling Haaland was substituted at half-time of extra time as Norway trailed England 2-1 in their 2026 World Cup quarter-final in Miami, with manager Stale Solbakken’s decision immediately prompting speculation that the Manchester City striker had picked up an injury.

Haaland had been the driving force behind Norway’s run to the last eight — their deepest World Cup run since 1998 — scoring seven goals in the tournament, including two in a standout last-16 victory over Brazil. He was replaced by Crystal Palace forward Jorgen Strand Larsen, who had himself battled illness in the days leading up to the match.

The timing of the substitution, with Norway needing a goal to stay in the competition, left pundits searching for an explanation. “It has to be an injury,” Alan Shearer said. “There is no way you take Haaland off if you are in desperate need of a goal.” Former England goalkeeper Paul Robinson suggested fatigue rather than a specific knock: “It must be fatigue for Erling Haaland because we have not seen him go down with an injury and it’s not a decision the manager would want to make.”

Haaland did not score against England — the first World Cup knockout match in which he had failed to find the net. He was, however, involved in a pivotal VAR moment: a push in the back of Elliot Anderson led to Torbjorn Heggem’s second-half strike being ruled out, a goal that would have put Norway ahead.

Norway had taken the lead through Andreas Schjelderup in the 36th minute, only for Jude Bellingham to equalise just before half-time. The match remained level through normal time before Bellingham struck again three minutes into extra time to put England in front at 2-1.

Solbakken was expected to address the decision and clarify Haaland’s condition in his post-match press conference.