Haaland hat trick as Norway beat Israel 5-0, 51 goals in 46 caps

Erling Haaland scored a hat trick as Norway beat Israel 5-0 in Oslo on Saturday, finishing the night with 51 goals in 46 international appearances and becoming one of the fastest players in history to reach the 50-goal mark. The Manchester City striker missed a first-half penalty and then missed the retake, but his three second-half strikes capped a dominant qualifying performance that left Norway firmly in control of Group I.

Israel had opened the scoring confusion earlier when an own goal by Anan Khalaili put Norway ahead after 18 minutes. Haaland struck first with an angled finish in the 27th minute, then added a powerful header in the 63rd and a back-post header in the 72nd. Norway’s victory was punctuated by pro-Palestinian protests before the match in Oslo, but the demonstrations did not affect the outcome on the field.

Assistant coach Kent Bergersen praised Haaland’s consistency. “There are no words that can do him justice. He scores goals in every possible way,” Bergersen said. Teammate Alexander Sørloth added, “You think you’ve seen everything, but he just gets better and better. There’s nothing he can’t do.” Head coach Ståle Solbakken, addressing Haaland’s missed...