Norway vs France: Solbakken defends 10 changes and the Haaland call

Stale Solbakken called it a no-brainer after Norway made 10 changes and lost 1-4 to France in Norway vs France. Erling Haaland was left out of the starting XI for the first time since 2024, while Martin Ødegaard was also kept back. Solbakken said the decision came from the physio, health and medical department after five or six players were badly affected by the Senegal game.

Solbakken's selection call

The manager's line was simple enough. “A no-brainer. Both my part and from the physio, health and medical department, and from some of the players themselves,” he told the BBC. He added that the only real consideration was the Norway fans, who would have wanted to see Haaland and Ødegaard play.

That explanation is easier to understand when the workload picture is added in. Norway had only 3 rest days between the Senegal win and France, and Norway's first World Cup since 1998 has naturally brought more attention to how they manage the squad.

The decision was also not made in a vacuum. Roy Keane said Norway's priority was to get out of the group, while Ian Wright said Haaland would take a rest if he needed it for the latter stages. Pat Nevin also framed it as a fitness and travel calculation.

France punish the rotation

The gamble still left France with a comfortable night. Ousmane Dembélé scored a first-half hat-trick in 25 minutes, and Kylian Mbappé struck the underside of the crossbar inside the opening minute. Norway did pull one back, but Jørgen Strand Larsen missed a penalty that would have made it 3-2 after half-time.

That is the awkward part for Solbakken. The selection was presented as squad management, not hesitation, but a 4-1 loss always sharpens the debate around resting two of your best players. Norway's 10 changes will be judged against the result, even if the reasoning was medical rather than tactical.

The bigger picture is still the one Solbakken chose. Norway moved on with the knockout stage in mind, and the next round comes with the same question hanging over the team selection rather than one bad night in Norway vs France.