The poor stats of the world's top striker against the African champions: Haaland started for 72 minutes, had 4 touches, and zero shots on target.

The 2026 World Cup in the USA, Canada, and Mexico begins this week, and teams are gearing up. A notable warm-up game featured Africa's champion and last tournament's biggest surprise, Morocco, facing Norway, this tournament's potential surprise. Morocco is world No. 7, worth €498 million; Norway is world No. 31, worth €590 million.

And the result? The match ended 1-1, with goals from two players from top-five-league clubs. Real Madrid midfielder Díaz broke the deadlock, while Arsenal captain Ødegaard equalized, leaving the sides to shake hands. However, with Mbappé's value declining, the world's top striker Haaland started and played 72 minutes, yet his statistics were rather embarrassing.

Haaland had only 4 touches in this match, meaning he barely got the ball. He made 2 passes, committed 1 offside, took 1 shot with none on target, and all other stats were zero. After the game, he received a low rating of 6.5.

In my personal opinion, Haaland is also a poacher. Without quality midfielders, his tactical value diminishes significantly. Plus, with the World Cup approaching, Haaland is afraid of getting injured, so he was certainly coasting against Morocco. Norway returns to the World Cup after 28 years, and Haaland needs to demonstrate the tactical value and contributions expected of the world's top striker. Moreover, Norway's double-striker tactic using Haaland and Sørloth isn't ideal; it would be better to use Bobb on the right wing. Only when facing a packed defense should they bring on both strikers and rely on long balls and crosses!