There is a special rivalry between Sweden and Norway in football. Former BVB superstar Erling Haaland had to experience the dark side firsthand. Now he faces new headwind.
The two previous duels in the Nations League between Sweden and Norway were not just about sports. After Norway’s 2-1 win in the first leg, Erling Haaland, who switched from Dortmund to Manchester City for the new season, caused a stir by publicly accusing Swede Alexander Milosevic of insulting and insulting him during the game.
Although the 30-year-old makes the allegations, the dispute was also a big topic before the second leg on Sunday. Sweden professional Ludwig Augustinsson, who played for Werder Bremen in the Bundesliga between 2017 and 2021, could not see any problem in the behavior of his teammate Milosevic.
“I played in Spain and Germany and a lot of bad things are said between the professionals there. You have to be able to deal with that and not complain in the media,” said the Sevilla defender, who added: “As a player you have to learn it .”
Erling Haaland finds the perfect answer
Augustinsson also argued that Haaland behaved “a bit immaturely”, although these are things “that can annoy you”. But: There is “a certain derby mood” between the two countries, and according to the 28-year-old, such insults “could happen”.
The Norwegian, who has scored 86 goals and provided 23 assists in 89 competitive games for Borussia Dortmund, found a clear response on the pitch in the second leg. After scoring both goals for his colors in the first leg, Haaland also scored twice in the second leg.
Haaland now has a similarly impressive rate of 20 goals in 21 games in national dress.