It was meant to be a Golden Boot showdown between Erling Haaland and Kylian Mbappe. Instead, Norway’s decision to bench their star striker backfired spectacularly as Ousmane Dembele scored a stunning 25-minute hat-trick to lead France to a 4-1 win at Boston Stadium.
Norway boss Stale Solbakken made 10 changes to the side that beat Senegal, leaving Haaland and captain Martin Odegaard on the bench for the final Group I game. “A no-brainer,” Solbakken said, citing medical advice and player fatigue. “Five or six players were very affected after 80 minutes against Senegal.”
“Norway rest Erling Haaland and make 10 changes, lose 4-1 to France as Ousmane Dembele scores hat-trick.”
But the gamble unravelled inside 32 minutes. Mbappe hit the crossbar after 22 seconds, and Dembele soon took over. The Ballon d’Or winner faked a shot, bamboozled Fredrik Andre Bjorkan and fired past Egil Selvik for the opener. He added a second with a curling left-foot strike, and after Thelo Aasgaard pulled one back for Norway, Dembele completed his treble with another precise low finish.
Haaland, who had scored four goals in Norway’s previous two group games, watched from the bench. His deputy, Jorgen Strand Larsen, missed a penalty that would have made it 3-2 after half-time. “If Erling Haaland needs a rest for the latter stages he will take that,” former England striker Ian Wright told ITV Sport before the game.
Haaland himself had seen this coming. After scoring twice in the 3-2 win over Senegal on Tuesday, he said: “They’re probably going to win against us. They’re probably going to win the whole tournament.”
France top the group with three wins from three and advance to a last-32 tie at the New York New Jersey Stadium on 30 June against the runners-up in Group F or G. Norway, having finished second, now face a 1,100-mile trip to Dallas for their next knockout game.
Haaland’s warning now looks prophetic. “Les Bleus possess the fire-power, X-factor and synergy to score masses of goals and open up just about every defence,” the Mirror’s report noted. Solbakken insisted the decision was necessary, saying: “The only consideration was for the Norway fans. They would have wanted to see Erling and Martin play.”
As France celebrate Dembele’s brilliance, Norway must hope their rested stars can deliver when it really matters.