Haaland names four candidates for World Cup 2022

"I think the top candidates are Brazil, Argentina, France and maybe England. I can't name a single team, because there are so many strong teams," Haaland was quoted as saying by TalkSport.

Haaland's perspective somewhat coincides with the prediction of the betting world. According to Betfair, the top five candidates are Brazil, Argentina, France, Spain and England, respectively. The next five positions belong to Germany, the Netherlands, Portugal, Belgium and Denmark.

Haaland's Norway team failed to qualify for the World Cup. In Group G of the European qualifying round, Norway ranked third with 18 points, five points behind the Netherlands and three points behind Turkey. Tickets to the World Cup in this group belonged to the Netherlands, and Turkey lost in a series of matches to win tickets.

Norway is going more than 20 years out of major tournaments. The last time they participated in the World Cup and the Euros were in 1998 and 2000. "I hope to play for Norway in a big tournament. That is our dream. The best we can be. to do is to attend the World Cup or the Euro," Haaland added.

Due to not attending the 2022 World Cup, Haaland will rest for more than a month. The striker who scored 23 goals in the first 18 matches of the 2022-2023 season for Man City said he would take advantage of his free time to relax his body and mind, then practice to prepare for the next stage of competition. Man City will return with a match against Liverpool in the fourth round of the League Cup, on December 22.

The 2022 World Cup will take place in Qatar from November 20 to December 18. After the group stage, half of the teams will return home. The remaining 16 teams will be split into a knockout match.