‘Insane’ Schedule Blamed for Erling Haaland Injury Worry
Norway manager Ståle Solbakken played down Erling Haaland’s enforced substitution as a case of fatigue thanks to a “grueling schedule” which, in his eyes, “is just insane.”
Haaland started all four of Norway’s Nations League fixtures this fall but asked to come off midway through the second half of Sunday’s clash with Portugal. The sight of Manchester City’s star striker wobbling off to the bench caused all manner of concern at the Etihad ahead of this weekend’s trip to Liverpool in the Premier League. Rather than any serious ailment, Haaland appears to be a victim of the modern game.
“There are many players who are really exhausted,” Solbakken explained. “[Sander] Berge and [Martin] Ødegaard are practically scraping rock bottom. Erling was digging deep for a long time. I think he took a real beating and served as an excellent target man. We were hoping for 60, and he managed 65. That’s a lot of positives.”
Heading into the clash with Portugal in Porto, Haaland had already been aware that he would not last the entirety of the contest. There had been discussion about saving the relentless scorer for the second half, but that was soon quashed.
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“He put in a good 60 minutes today,” Solbakken reasoned. “He played two full 90-minute matches against Denmark and Portugal. He was tired against Wales. That’s why we had a heart-to-heart yesterday. We went through the various possibilities.
“He could perhaps have played the last 45 minutes against Portugal. That was a topic of discussion. But he has a really bad feeling about that kind of thing. He’s had experiences where he was brought on in the League Cup, and it didn’t go particularly well. I’m very pleased that he managed to dig deep and deliver a good 60 minutes.”
What Next for Erling Haaland?
With Norway’s international slate cleared and Manchester City not in action until that Anfield excursion on Sunday, Haaland has been afforded that most precious commodity in modern soccer: a break.
The striker made the short flight from Portugal to Málaga in the south of Spain after Sunday’s fixture for a blast of warm weather, Norwegian outlet Dagbladet have reported. Enzo Maresca is not expecting his top scorer back until later this week, where he will have to steel himself for another endless torrent of fixtures.
“It’s a grueling schedule,” Solbakken lamented. “For those playing in the Champions League who’ve had little time off, it’s more brutal than for the others. Especially for the players who didn't get a summer break because of the World Cup and going deep into the tournament. We did that.
“Having so little vacation and then heading straight into high-intensity leagues—and then you have this international break on top of that—it’s not about making excuses. It’s just insane. Especially for the smaller nations.”
Strikers With the Most Minutes Played for Club and Country in 2026
Rank / Player | Club / Country | Total Mins (Apps) |
|---|---|---|
1. Rasmus Højlund | Napoli / Denmark | 2,813 |
2. Mikel Oyarzabal | Real Sociedad / Spain | 2,803 |
3. Erling Haaland | Man City / Norway | 2,789 |
4. Kylian Mbappé | Real Madrid / France | 2,629 |
5. Ante Budimir | Osasuna / Croatia | 2,577 |
Stats via Transfermarkt. Correct as of Oct. 5, 2026.
Haaland is a victim of his own success. Line up with the baby-faced forward in your team and the chances of scoring explode. It’s an option few managers can resist, which has taken Haaland to this breaking point.
“He plays pretty much every match for his club,” the striker’s international manager fumed. “He belongs to the group with the heaviest workload, precisely because he plays in every competition and is ‘The Main Man.’”
While he is yet to miss a minute for Manchester City in the Premier League or Champions League, Maresca has warned that Haaland will have to be rested at some point this season. Whether he chooses a trip to Anfield in City’s first game since their seismic guilty verdict to leave out his best player is another question entirely.
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