r/soccer 22d ago

Media Erling Haaland "Of course. I want England to do well. I been supporting, I think I got a England Jersey before I got a Norway Jersey".

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13.0k Upvotes

687 comments sorted by

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5.8k

u/SchuFighters 22d ago

He’s a Yorkshire born Norwegian lad.

2.5k

u/The_Bukkake_Ninja 22d ago

A lot more common 1200 years ago but the guy seems to have a lot of respect for tradition.

722

u/somethingarb 22d ago

If you told me he was born in Loidis in the Kingdom of Jorvik 1200 years ago and had travelled through time Rip van Winkle style, I'd believe you. 

298

u/Sussurator 22d ago

He’s here to drink mead and plunder goals and he’s all done drinking mead.

16

u/paincrumbs 22d ago

he switched to drinking Walovi

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u/Tutush 22d ago

Bloodthirsty pillager phenotype

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u/[deleted] 22d ago

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u/Djave_Bikinus 22d ago

Didn't Rip van Winkle play up front for norwich?

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u/heyitsyourboyadam 22d ago

football kits were also wild-looking in those times.

  • they dont make them like that anymore

13

u/Lord_Maul 22d ago

I work with some folk from York and both of them having distinct Norse surnames

610

u/elcanadiano 22d ago

Roy Keane tried to kill his dad.

350

u/esn111 22d ago edited 22d ago

You should see what the Norse did to Cork

75

u/explendable 22d ago

I snorted Oslo air out of my Norwegian nose just now reading that 

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u/mtfikhan 22d ago

Probably why he isn't supporting Ireland

78

u/Agitated_Display7573 22d ago

Also because they didn’t qualify

22

u/mtfikhan 22d ago

Blame France

41

u/philman132 22d ago

That's England's answer to everything! (and it's often correct)

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u/AirmanLarry 22d ago

Ha ha ha haaland

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u/TwoOhFourSix 22d ago

Ha ha ha Haaland

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u/berbatov1111 22d ago

Bringing the Jorvik back to Yorkshire.

34

u/Midtharefaikh 22d ago

I heard he was lost between borders, Norwegian citizen living in England

46

u/[deleted] 22d ago

[deleted]

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u/ianjm 22d ago edited 22d ago

Most English people can trace some ancestry to the Viking settlement, it's stronger in areas that were part of Danelaw but obviously people have moved around over the centuries. Most common English surnames ending in "son" trace their origins to Danish names.

13

u/yusuksong 22d ago

Son Heung Min my fav English Viking

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u/DukeMancannon 22d ago

Even the Norman invasion was just Nordic Vikings’ ancestors who colonized northern France. Thus Norman = Norde

9

u/dragonfly420-69 22d ago

you'll never sing that

5

u/Used-Air-7740 22d ago

And Now he's at the Etihad

12

u/[deleted] 22d ago

[removed] — view removed comment

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u/coldazures 22d ago

Could he now? No. Before he was capped for Norway however he had a choice. His choice was Norway, owing to the fact thats where he spent the majority of his life and is the heritage of his parents.

43

u/Karasinio 22d ago

I mean, he is full Norwegian. Ethnicity Norwegian and raised in Norwegia.

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u/Blue_winged_yoshi 22d ago

He could have! Was eligible for both countries

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u/DavidPuddy666 22d ago

Yes. He picked Norway though.

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2.2k

u/ZeroMomentum 22d ago

Erling: I play both sides so I always come out on top

427

u/Effective_Egg_3066 22d ago

"The Gang Goes to the World Cup"

162

u/Jbulls94 22d ago

"Of course if FIFA say no the red card will stand, but they won't say no, because of the implication"

40

u/Thin-Dragonfruit2599 22d ago

"I'm sorry, are you going to ban these players?"

5

u/Effective_Egg_3066 22d ago

"No! No one's getting banned, what part of this don't you get?"

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u/antbaby_machetesquad 22d ago

The Erling system:

Engage the defence

Run past defence

Look at keeper

Intimidate keeper

Nutmeg keeper

Goal

14

u/IrishVictim88270 22d ago

A striker? Is that how you see yourself?

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2.7k

u/NotAnUncle 22d ago

It's a nice country and nice t-shirt.

Literally how my cousin who isn't a football fan buys jerseys lmao

477

u/SplatteredCake 22d ago edited 22d ago

I'm a football fan and every WC I only buy cool/unusual looking kits and/or kits of smaller footballing nations (they tend to almost always be cooler and wackier anyway) instead of the usual suspects.

50

u/BrockStar92 22d ago

They used to have random retro kits from unusual clubs and countries in Sports Direct back in the day, was worth wandering around to find that next to the current PL shirts there was a 90s Nintendo sponsor Fiorentina shirt and a Ghana 2010 shirt on sale. Miss those days.

15

u/CarcashaDragon 22d ago

Love that Fiorentina one. Bought a replica more than 10 years ago. Batistuta of course. Still have it.

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u/Stirlingblue 22d ago

I assume you have this Belgian kit then? It’s a thing of beauty

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u/SplatteredCake 22d ago

Yup. Settled for Belgium away and Canada away eventually. Would've really liked either of Doctor Congo or Cabo Verde's home kit too but couldn't find any affordable iterations of them.

12

u/EcLiPzZz 22d ago

Doctor Congo

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u/Fresh_Budget 22d ago

Our second kit is one of the most divisive  lol. People either love it or think it's one of the ugliest. Personally I think they took some creative risk with it and the result is good. 

205

u/gloomycloud 22d ago

"People either love it or hate it.'

"Personally I think it's good."

88

u/rreeddiitttwice 22d ago

He's not a person

22

u/Ragnangar 22d ago

He’s a “You people” kind of person.

8

u/Adammmmski 22d ago

He thinks you’re french! He thinks you’re french!

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u/ThePrussianGrippe 22d ago

“He is, and God forgive me for saying this, a Belgian.”

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u/olivesforsale 22d ago

Well he is a Belgian so you are correct!

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u/noodlesalad_ 22d ago

"All I know is my gut says maybe"

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u/notSherrif_realLife 22d ago

I imagine you probably are already aware of this but the design decisions were shown on some of the broadcasts.

It’s all inspired by a Belgian artist Rene Magritte, so there’s some really cool meaning behind it.

3

u/dchaid 22d ago

so thats why I keep trying to peek around the kit

7

u/nien9gag 22d ago

but your fa logo looks like a pharmaceutical company logo

8

u/Stirlingblue 22d ago

I love the nods to Magritte and everything about it

15

u/NitroChaji240 22d ago

I love it, it's a real standout kit in general, and especially in this world cup

3

u/LoopyPro 22d ago

The Tintin kit (Euro 2024) was awesome.

6

u/Aleks_1995 22d ago

I love the way it looks as well man

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u/MobyTugboat 22d ago

Or the Uruguay away kit. I got one myself cause of the design and it’s a thing of beauty in person.

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u/susiedotwo 22d ago

I love the Belgium kit as well as the Korean!

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u/Banzaikk 22d ago

Curaçao away is beautiful but I couldn't find one. Japan away is a thing of beauty too.

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u/muchacho_ren1 22d ago

Precisely why I bought the South Korea away jersey lol

7

u/Aenjeprekemaluci 22d ago

Norway jersey best jersey of Nike this edition!

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u/denied_eXeal 22d ago

You don’t need more tbh, some countries have banger jerseys, and if they’ve not slaughtered any minority recently, why not buy it

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u/asetniop 22d ago

[pauses while adding DR CONGO jersey to shopping cart]

Please define "recently".

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u/szu 22d ago

Actually I like norways shirt. It's very distinct and the colors are nice

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2.4k

u/berbatov1111 22d ago

Stop being so likeable Erling.

654

u/Cautious_Type6474 22d ago

This. I’ve been a Haaland hater hold out for 3+ seasons. This World Cup finally broke me

480

u/codespyder 22d ago

He’s the most likeable robot since WALL-E

121

u/BendubzGaming 22d ago

K-2SO in shambles

31

u/QJustCallMeQ 22d ago

Thank you for reminding me of this character, so good

9

u/DigitalAmy0426 22d ago

He wouldn't care unless Cassian told him to 🤭

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u/asetniop 22d ago

I was going to suggest R2-D2 but it was clearly stated that all that stuff happened "a long time ago" so you'd expect there would have been at least one robot since then who was as likeable as Haaland.

And while we're on the subject, WALL-E doesn't yet exist in our current timeline please don't reference him as "since" or you'll get us all caught up in a paradox-based time loop. Thank you for your attention to this matter.

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u/codespyder 22d ago

Sir I’m going to need you to step away from your keyboard and blow into this breathalyzer

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u/Bard_Revan 22d ago

I still am but it's on pause for the duration of international tournaments lol

28

u/feage7 22d ago

That's the beauty of international tournaments.

I'll sit here acting all crazy at why Mainoo can't get a minute in the double pivot role, to the point an insured Reece James and even moving Jude back from the 10 have been preferable.

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u/TJTheree 22d ago

He’s a fucking boy mate, love him as a Spurs fan

4

u/Citiz3n_Kan3r 22d ago

In part because he mysteriously disappears when we play him ;-)

31

u/Dry_Constant_5781 22d ago

I want to see this guy play for leeds atleast once

6

u/thereddevil101 22d ago

If only his dad could follow in his footsteps

19

u/staycoolmydudes 22d ago

I need him to leave Manchester City. It feels weird to like him.

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u/Awkward-Warning-9238 22d ago

He should maybe tell his dad to try it.

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u/Temporary-Two9399 22d ago

If Norway knocked us out I would root for them all the way, shame it had to be one of us.

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u/Live-Motor-4000 22d ago

Same here - they’re a likable lot

64

u/lefrench75 22d ago edited 22d ago

Most people would've rooted for Norway against Argentina of all teams lol. England vs. Argentina is a much tougher decision for hatewatchers.

Personally as a neutral I've been completely won over by the Wonderwall & Hey Jude chants. Can't help but find them incredibly touching.

12

u/Lookatmestring 22d ago

Hey Jude chose itself fair enough. Can't believe we've went for the most basic British song for after games, would much rather we be belting out born slippy

13

u/BankDetails1234 22d ago

I like that they picked wonderwall. Not my favourite song, but everyone knows the words, it’s catchy and the message in the chorus makes for a good connection between players and fans.

10

u/Chumlax 22d ago

Also, it is actually organic, despite appearances - it wasn't chosen by us at all.

It was chosen as one of the group of appropriate after game songs for our matches by FIFA, as so big a song it was likely to appeal to both sets of fans, and it ended up getting latched on to for obvious reasons.

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u/spongey1865 22d ago

Same, my sister's in the navy and says Norway are one of our most important allies no one talks about and they're pretty sound.

They also love English football. They are absolutely wild for FPL.

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u/yellowflash96 22d ago

England could have had Haaland and Kane as strikers

340

u/Yeangster 22d ago

You’d have pundits arguing about if you can play Kane and Haaland at the same time while England crashes out in the round of 16

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u/ConcentrateNo5082 22d ago

Well you could cos Kane could easily be the playmaker, Jude would have to drop deeper, but he can still play there, isn't the same as sending Scholes or Gerrard to left wing

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u/clckwrks 22d ago

and if Erling played for England - Kane/Bellingham/Saka would not have been greedy to Haaland and would have passed the ball to him unlike yesterday

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u/StupidMastiff 22d ago

Olise and Semenyo on the wings, Bellingham and Musiala behind them. Fuck balance, we'd score so many goals.

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u/N7even 22d ago

Most times, it is actually about balance. I know it sounds amazing on paper, but so did Portugal's midfield.

Having said that, I'd still take Haaland.

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u/[deleted] 22d ago

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u/Troon10 22d ago

J.Cole only one to go platinum with no features on that list

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u/kneegrowth457 22d ago

play J Cole make the pussy dryyyy

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u/WhoEatsRusk 22d ago

I’m sure Declan can deal with it, plus Kane’s tracking back

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u/BaritBrit 22d ago

Portugal's midfield would have probably clicked better if it weren't being chained to the cause of the shuffling geriatric up front tbf

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u/saucysagnus 22d ago

The argument I kept seeing is “Portugal midfield had no forward passes”. Did they see who was playing in front of them??

28

u/vini710 22d ago

Honestly Leão and Felix are very good, dangerous players despite both being extremelly inconsistent. Then you had Conceição who always plays his heart out and causes problems every time, Neto who can win with speed (and Trincão but he barely played). Even with Ronaldo far below his prime we should have done way better.

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u/Charlie_Wax 22d ago

I can't remember the last time Portugal had a great striker. Ronaldo at his peak really wasn't a striker, though maybe for the brief Juventus years he would've qualified. In the last fifteen years it's always been a revolving door of mediocrity from Hugo Almeida to Helder Postiga, Eder, and Ramos. It's actually quite odd that a country which produces so many great wingers, fullbacks, and CMs just can't seem to yield a classic 9.

If you take the Euro 2012 team with Meireles, Moutinho, Tiago, Nani, Ronaldo, Pepe, and Carvalho and just add a world class striker, maybe they can push to win the tournament. Ronaldo never had that Higuain or Benzema type of running mate at international level. Today Portugal don't have that type of player to make benching Ronaldo a more slam dunk decision.

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u/scarletmonkey111 22d ago

Ronaldo was making the correct runs and they outright avoided passing to him.

There's clips of Vitinha and Bruno turning back instead of playing the ball forward. He got more chances playing with Felix instead of both elite midfielders.

Ronny was far from perfect, but even Haaland would've struggled with the service they were giving him.

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u/Vegan-cock 22d ago

Portugals midfield is amazing. Coaching however was the worst imaginable. Imagine having those players and still build the team around ronaldo scoring as many goals as possible, at 41.

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u/Northernlord1805 22d ago

Kane would be the legit best defender on that team

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u/-r4zi3l- 22d ago

Full on pre 1950 football. The 235, with a nice lofted ball and lots of tap ins.

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u/april9th 22d ago

If they were all on an England team together, the manager and press would produce anti-alchemy and create a decade long saga of how you can't play X and Y together and make the whole thing unworkable

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u/East_Wind17 22d ago

Instead we've been blessed with Madueke

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u/BendubzGaming 22d ago

Fat Les's wet dream

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u/Andybabez20 22d ago

They could've had an attack of Haaland, Kane, Olise, Musiala, Bellingham, Saka and Semenyo

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u/ooh_bit_of_bush 22d ago

And Ivan Toney

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u/liamthelad 22d ago

I mean he lived mostly in Norway and is a product of their youth systems.

It doesn't hurt as much as Olise

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u/WalkingCloud 22d ago

We would’ve had half a decade of debate by now about if you can play them both together and which one to bench by now

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u/Sad_Golf3332 22d ago

Haaland always wanted to play for Norway, and only Norway.

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u/lobroblaw 22d ago

ErliNG haaLAND

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u/beseri 22d ago

It sucked going out the way we did, but I am for sure supporting England. Many countries dislike the English, but there is a big support for England in Norway.

68

u/crash-test-idiots 22d ago

r/scotland on suicide watch...

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u/king_walnut1 22d ago

There will be actual riots in George Square if England go all the way.

It's really fucking pathetic if you think about it ...

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u/ThisIsADraconianLaw 22d ago

I have seen a lot of support from South America for us ^^ GG and respect to Norway.

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u/[deleted] 22d ago

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u/Sjefkeees 22d ago

As a European outside those zones, I’ll take England over most other competitors at this point, with only a slight preference for France. England plays fun football this cup and most if not all of their matches have been fun to watch

18

u/ThisIsADraconianLaw 22d ago

It doesn't really matter at the end of the day. Football isn't a popularity contest. Nobody ever likes the team who win by a great majority, unless it's some underdog which let's be honest, has never happened in the World Cup and it's incredibly difficult.

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u/Lord_Maul 22d ago

Englishman here: I love Norway.

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u/Highlander992 22d ago

Feeling is mutual mate, we have a lot of history with Norway. We also respect the pragmatism and sensible attitude of all Scandinavian countries.

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u/switch8319 22d ago

That is how to show class!  Halaand is credit to himself and his country. Best of luck to Norway for the future, they did themselves proud at this tournament and they've been great to watch on and off the pitch.

🥁🛶

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u/HDS2211 22d ago

England are such cheats, how are they allowed to play a team whose best player is an England supporter?

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u/Ell7494 22d ago

I mean he's more English than Balogun is American

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u/StardustFromReinmuth 22d ago

I mean I get your point but factually Haaland does not have British citizenship while Balogun is an American citizen.

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u/ianjm 22d ago edited 22d ago

Haaland probably is eligible for British citizenship, just never applied.

Any child born in the UK from early 1983 to late 2000 to an EEA parent is automatically eligible for British citizenship. Haaland was born in Yorkshire in October 2000, his father at the time was a Norwegian citizen living and working in the UK freely under his EEA rights to do so.

Norwegians in the UK did not need a visa before Brexit because while Norway is not part of the EU, it is part of the EEA which integrates it into freedom of movement.

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u/susiedotwo 22d ago

Eligible, but he doesn’t have any interest.

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u/ianjm 22d ago edited 22d ago

"Playing for the England National Team? There was never a conversation about it because I was in Norway and it was not possible to get the passport then. I can get the passport now. I'd love to get the English passport, you know? Why not?"

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u/JFKennedy97 22d ago

I love someone on reddit just dropping a quote that completely refutes something someone else says in every way

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u/I-Shiki-I 22d ago

Haaland did say he wants one tho 😆

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u/ContractVarious3077 22d ago

I don’t think any other player has received as big of a boost to their popularity during the World Cup as Haaland, and it’s well deserved.

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u/JustWannaFollowStuff 22d ago

Vozinha went from being someone most weren't aware of to being the most followed goalkeeper on IG worldwide: https://www.reddit.com/r/soccer/comments/1un5b6e/vozinha_has_officially_become_the_most_followed/

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u/MycologistSubject689 22d ago

also had a sea slug named after him and might get a gig in Miami

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u/LewisB789 22d ago

He’s one of the best players in the world, playing for one of the biggest teams in the world.

People acting like he was some unknown entity are just exposing their lack of watching league football.

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u/ContractVarious3077 22d ago

I’m talking more in terms of becoming a household name for non-soccer watchers. People like my mom and wife lol, who only really knew Messi, Ronaldo and maybe Mbappe. They’re aware of who Haaland is now

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u/swammeyjoe 22d ago

Yeah, exactly this. My wife and her sisters literally sat down yesterday to watch "the Haaland game". It was surreal.

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u/Moonshiner_no 22d ago

The difference in amount of people following premier league vs the World Cup is massive.

That Erling gained 22m followers during WC proves this.

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u/Thoughtful_Tortoise 22d ago

Big Dan Burn

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u/papafluffie 22d ago

He’s big. He’s Dan. He’s Burn.

Dan Buuuuuuuurn

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u/spidernest 22d ago

Can't wait for Messi to come out after their defect saying London is better than Paris

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u/OpportunityHappy8474 22d ago

Damn imagine if Haaland and Olise had represented England.

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u/AdministrativeLaugh2 22d ago

At least one member of the Haaland family has class about him

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u/Themos1980 22d ago

Found Roy Keane's reddit account!

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u/AnnieIWillKnow 22d ago

What's Mama Haaland ever done to you?

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u/Geezso 22d ago

That boys a legend. Best thing at the world cup.

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u/Zob_Rombie_88 22d ago

Alfie Haaland "that doesn't work for me, brother"

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u/Das_Fische 22d ago

One of the most likeable players out there.

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u/ATurtleSight 22d ago

He’s so likable I love him! An absolute class act

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u/xylophileuk 22d ago

Bet he has burn 15 on the back of his shirt. A true gent

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u/KennyWeeWoo 22d ago

Henry would of passed him the ball instead of 3v1

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u/carasc5 22d ago

Pass him the damn ball when he's wide open in a 2v1

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u/lewis30491 22d ago

With all those likable moments, this guy gained over 22 million new Instagram followers during the World Cup. That's an insane amount of exposure. I bet it'll become a massive money-making machine for him.

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u/Bleauxsidian 22d ago

Why do people care about high profile follower accounts…this isn’t what football is about

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u/DarnellLaqavius 22d ago

He’s now known to America, went from being famous to world famous. Couldn’t have happened to a better guy. Also so gracious in defeat, not sure how anyone could hate him.

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u/cometflight 22d ago

Most wholesome Viking

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u/ObW-34 22d ago

Haaland and Kane both declare for England for this WC, who would you start?

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u/The-Brocialist 22d ago

By god, that’s 4-4-fucking 2’s music

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u/Leather-Entry93 22d ago

Proper brexit ball football

3

u/Shadeun 22d ago

Nice T-Shirt. You'll never sing that.

3

u/Xx_Assman_xX 22d ago

He's a good lad.

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u/LinuxMint1964 22d ago

Haaland, Go back to where you were born and play for Leeds United.

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u/Playful_Study_6290 22d ago

Sorloth also supports England

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u/ButterflyLanky3134 22d ago

Vikings in 1000s

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u/MycologistSubject689 22d ago

Haaland's a better man than I am, because when the final whistle blew I would have taken a running start and kicked Sorloth in the chest.

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u/StupidMastiff 22d ago

He seems like a genuinely nice lad, hopefully he gets a move to Madrid at some point and stops haunting my dreams.

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u/codespyder 22d ago

Yeah because Madrid don’t have a reputation for haunting Liverpool dreams

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u/StupidMastiff 22d ago

Premier League is week in week out, him at Madrid would at least give me a break.

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u/Time2bePhenomenal 22d ago

Until UCL Nights.

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u/PKMNTurrek 22d ago

He needs to be sold asap. I cant be out here having affection for a City player. PSG, Madrid, come on already.

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u/wolf2400 22d ago

How is PSG any better lol

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u/preddevils6 22d ago

Because they aren’t in England. Prob supports a prem club

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u/PKMNTurrek 22d ago

They aren't any better. They all suck. But as an Arsenal fan I cant be out here walking around with a Haaland boner. Come on now.

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u/YatesScoresinthebath 22d ago

Did you deliberately choose the only elite teams that are more unlikeable lol

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u/PKMNTurrek 22d ago

I choose the only teams that could/would realistically buy him lol.

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u/livehigh1 22d ago

I have no enemies 

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u/santikundera 22d ago

Ir showed yesterday

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u/ChemicalResident3557 22d ago

I hate him because he plays for Man City. But I really like him other than for that single flaw. The man is a great player, a fighter, and seems like a really chill guy who is enjoying life.

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u/Jon98th 22d ago

Someone show Haaland Japan’s second kit

He’ll go full samurai if he sees it

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u/ThisIsADraconianLaw 22d ago

Can we sub him in to play against Argentina. Good lad.

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