Erling Haaland will play for Norway against Wales in Cardiff on Thursday at 19:45 BST for the first time since the Premier League confirmed Manchester City’s financial rule breaches. The Norway camp says Haaland has been "no different" since the news broke, and he trained as normal at Cardiff City Stadium on Wednesday evening. Kristoffer Ajer said the striker has stayed the same with the national team, as Wales vs Norway comes with plenty around it but very little sign of strain inside the camp.

Norway's line on Haaland

Ajer, speaking to the BBC, said Haaland has kept the same energy around the squad and has not changed despite his status. "The biggest compliment I always give is that he hasn't changed a bit from the moment I met him even though he's the biggest star on the planet right now," he said. That fits with the other line Ajer offered, that Haaland has been "exactly the way he's always the same with the national team." Solbakken kept the discussion tight as well, saying: "What we speak about is between him and me."

The football side of the story still matters for Norway. Haaland has 65 goals in 57 appearances for his country, and he has 3 goals in 2 UEFA Nations League appearances this season. His 8.62 rating in the competition points to a player who is still delivering at his usual level while the noise sits around him rather than inside the team.

Wales and the game in Cardiff

Norway are also not walking into a dead rubber. They sit second in their Nations League group with 3 points from 2 matches, while Wales are bottom with 0 points from 2 games and are on a winless run of six matches. That gives the fixture a proper edge before the sides meet again in November.

Solbakken has kept the focus on the task in front of him, and the numbers around Wales do add pressure to the home side. But the main read from Norway is still the same one Ajer gave: Haaland has trained normally, spoken normally and looked normal enough for the squad to treat Thursday as another match, even if the backdrop is anything but ordinary.

Written by Jack Mercer with AI-assisted research, cross-checked against 2 outlets. How we work →