🔥 Haaland surpasses iconic international duo in World Cup debut | OneFootball

Norway star Erling Haaland has, expectedly, officially announced himself on the global stage with a first-half brace against Iraq in Boston.

One of the players across the 2026 World Cup that continues to draw attention, and rightfully so, the Manchester City goal machine delivered a typical final-third performance in service of his country.

After a brilliant campaign that saw Haaland lead all goal scorers across World Cup qualifying, the 25-year-old bagged a brace of poacher's efforts in an opening 45-minute period against a determined Iraq side that have given Ståle Solbakken's troops a real run for their money.

And with that, Haaland, who now has 57 goals in 51 caps for his country, has surpassed two iconic names in the process, eclipsing both Samuel Eto'o (56) and Gabriel Batistuta (56) for all-time international goals (per StatMuse).

Haaland also now has 25 goal contributions in his last 11 appearances for Norway, as he continues his assault on the beautiful game across all competitive levels.

And for a player who is averaging 1.12 international goals/match, more than Cristiano Ronaldo and Luis Suárez combined (1.11), this summer could see him steal the show from Kylian Mbappé if he remains on this sort of form.

📸 Justin Setterfield - 2026 Getty Images