Haaland misses 2 pens, still gets Norway hat trick

OSLO, Norway –Manchester CitystarErling Haalandtwice missed a penalty for Norway against Israel, but still wound up with a hat trick in a 5-0 World Cup qualifying win on Saturday. Haaland’s first penalty was hit low and saved byDaniel Peretz. But Polish referee Szymon Marciniak ordered the kick to be retaken because the goalkeeper had moved off his line too soon. He tried the other way second time, aiming for the corner, but Peretz guessed correctly again and palmed his effort away as Haaland looked on disbelievingly. Haaland made up for it later in the first half when he scored with a low strike after latching ontoAlexander Sørloth’s pass, his 10th goal in the qualifying campaign. The Norway star went on to score two more goals to take his tally to 12, the most in UEFA qualifying matches by far. He also has 12 goals in nine matches for City this season, taking his club tally to 136 in 155 games for the club. The hat trick for Haaland took his total for Norway to 51 in his career to extend his lead as the country’s all-time leader in goals. He reached the 50-goal mark in just 46 games, whereas it tookHarry Kane71 matches withEngland,Brazil’sNeymar74 andKylian Mbappé90 games withFranceto hit the half-century milestone. Record eight-time Ballon d’Or winnerLionel Messitook 107 games to hit 50 for Argentina andCristiano Ronaldoneeded 114 games with Portugal. The win keeps Norway perfect in qualifying with six wins from six games. They leadItalyby nine points in Group I, but the Italians can still theoretically catch them for top spot and an automatic bid to the World Cup next summer. There were peaceful pro-Palestinian protests before the match in Oslo. A police line formed close to the stadium but at a measured distance from the protesters, some of whom chanted “Shut down the embassy,” while others carried red cards and one woman held up a small sign saying “Game Over Israel.” A few dozen fans stayed to continue protesting outside the stadium once the match started.