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Erling Haaland was named among the substitutes for Norway’s top-of-the-group encounter against France at the World Cup.

Haaland began his World Cup campaign in the way most expected—by finding the back of the net.

Making his debut in a major international tournament, the Norwegian striker scored twice in the opener against Iraq, and followed that up with another brace versus Senegal. He went head-to-head with some of the competition’s biggest names, including Kylian Mbappe, who also featured in the same group.

Both Norway and France entered their final group fixture with two wins apiece. France emerged victorious with a 4-1 win, while Haaland remained on the bench for the entirety of the match.

Haaland’s numbers for Norway are extraordinary. Since making his senior debut just a month after turning 19, he has accumulated 52 caps and scored an incredible 59 goals—averaging more than a goal per game.

He has netted in 12 consecutive competitive matches for his country, including home and away strikes against Italy in qualifiers, as well as braces in each of his first two World Cup appearances.

Among fans, there had been murmurs that Norway might pull off an upset against France, but those hopes faded as soon as the team sheets were revealed.

Head coach Stale Solbakken made an astonishing 10 changes to his starting lineup from the previous win over Senegal, with Fredrik Aursnes being the only player retained.

There were no reports suggesting Haaland was carrying an injury before the highly anticipated clash, implying Solbakken’s decision was purely tactical.

Norway had already secured qualification to the round of 32, and the match merely determined their final standing in the group. Solbakken evidently decided that finishing first wasn’t a priority, opting instead to rest key players like Haaland for the knockout stages.

As a result, Haaland was rested to preserve his fitness and energy for Norway’s deeper run into the tournament in the coming rounds.

For neutral supporters, it was a slightly disappointing development, as many had anticipated an early showdown between two of the world’s premier forwards, Haaland and Mbappe.