Viking vs. Anglo-Saxon: Haaland and Kane Lead Norway and England into Final Battle

Tonight at midnight, some of the most outstanding forwards in the modern history of the world's most popular football league — the English Premier League — will lead their national teams into a decisive battle for a spot in the World Cup semi-finals. Two giants of world football — Norwegian Erling Haaland and Englishman Harry Kane — will face each other and, perhaps, finally settle the debate about who is the best and why, writes the BBC.

The Kane — Haaland rivalry is not as bright and intense as the more famous Messi — Ronaldo or Yamal — Bellingham duels, as they have spent only one season in the same league. But their careers are closely intertwined, and the England — Norway match will be a rare opportunity for both to personally determine who is stronger.

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Harry Kane is the leader and face of the England national team. Erling Haaland is the battering ram and talisman of the Norway national team. Both are national symbols. Here the similarities end and interesting differences begin.

Kane is a family man, composed and reserved. Haaland is a 'lad's lad', healthy and powerful, looks a bit wild, but always smiles broadly and is content with everything. By the end of July, Kane will turn 33, Haaland will be 26. Haaland has 60 million followers on Instagram, Kane has three times fewer.

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Haaland is an ideal hero for social networks.

Off the field, he constantly jokes and acts silly, creating the most popular viral content. And on the field, he is almost unparalleled: even people far from football share videos in which Haaland looks like a true giant.

Here he is — the embodiment of unrestrained force: he rushes across the field in seven-league strides and easily tosses annoying defenders in the penalty area. Here he is — the embodiment of an unshakeable obstacle: standing like a rock, from which one by one everyone who tries to knock him down or at least budge him comically bounces off.

Kane is the complete opposite. His lifestyle is more modest.

He is married to his high school sweetheart and is raising four children. Publicly, he prefers to talk about family, team, and charity. He is a reliable and disciplined professional, a respected leader.

His main hobby is golf. Not the most successful image for TikTok and Instagram.

The difference in the characters of the two giants of English football surprisingly reflects the difference in their paths to success.

Kane's path was long and arduous, through thorns to the stars. Haaland's was a bright and rapid breakthrough, a truly gigantic leap.

Kane is associated with the suffering of English fans and the unbearably long wait for the moment when the World Cup will finally "come home," as fans of the men's England team sing, whose last and only World Cup triumph was 60 years ago — in 1966. Even the European Championship, the men's team cannot win, while the women's team has twice in a row become European champions and reached the World Cup final.

And personally, Kane was unlucky throughout his 14 seasons in England. He was the leader and symbol of "Tottenham," but the club won nothing during those years. Only after moving to Germany as an already recognized legend of English football, Kane gained top-level teammates at Bayern Munich and finally kissed his first championship trophy last year.

At that point, he was already almost 32 years old.

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With Haaland, on the other hand, there are no sufferings and defeats, but ease and breakthrough. Norway had not reached the final stage of the World Cup since 1998, and Haaland ensured not only their trip to America but also their progression from the group, as well as a victory over Brazil itself in the playoff matches. In that encounter, he scored both goals, and for the first time in history, Norway reached the quarter-finals of the world championship.

In Haaland's personal career, everything is also much more cheerful than in Kane's. He has been collecting trophies since he was 18, and by the age of 22, he had achieved everything Kane only dreamed of: he became the English champion and a Champions League winner.

Haaland is half a head taller than Kane — not only in height but also in effectiveness, including in this championship. In America, the Norwegian Viking played four matches and scored seven goals. The Englishman played more matches — five, but scored fewer goals — six, two of which were from penalties.

Their playing style is similar yet different. Both are powerful central forwards, capable of pressing through defenses in the penalty area.

But Haaland is physically stronger and more effective: one touch is enough for him to send the ball into the net.

In this championship, he scored on average once every 50 minutes, Kane — once every 75 minutes.

Kane is inferior to him in physical strength and finishing, but he is older and more experienced, and his football role is broader — he can not only finish attacks but also organize play, moving from the central striker position to an attacking midfielder role.

This is confirmed by the statistics of this tournament: in addition to six goals, Kane also has an assist, whereas Haaland has no assists.

That is why Kane is not only the main star but also the captain of the England national team, while Haaland is only the main star of the Norway national team, with the captain's armband belonging to the 27-year-old leader of London's "Arsenal," Martin Ødegaard.

Who is better: Kane or Haaland?

There is more in common between them than it might seem.

Haaland was born in Leeds, England, where his father played football. If he hadn't chosen to play for Norway, he could very well be in Kane's shoes as England's main striker today.

And Kane could have ended up in Haaland's place at "Manchester City" if his transfer from "Tottenham" in 2021 hadn't fallen through at the last moment. "City" offered 100 million pounds for Kane, but "Tottenham" demanded no less than 150 million.

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The most successful Premier League coach of the last decade, Pep Guardiola, postponed his search for a replacement for Sergio Aguero for another year, and in the summer of 2022, he bought a striker from Borussia Dortmund who was three times cheaper, younger, more energetic, and more effective — Erling Haaland.

As a result, Kane's London club finished only eighth in the Premier League in the 2022/23 season and was eliminated from all cup competitions.

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Harry Kane himself, although he scored 30 goals — a number usually sufficient for the top scorer title — still lost that title to Erling Haaland, because he scored a Premier League record 36 goals in his debut season and helped "Manchester City" achieve a historic treble — winning the English championship, the FA Cup, and the Champions League.

And Harry Kane left England altogether and moved to Germany.

Now Haaland is three times more expensive than Kane. According to Transfermarkt's latest valuation, the 25-year-old Norwegian shares first place in the list of the world's most expensive footballers with 18-year-old Spaniard Lamine Yamal. Their transfer value is estimated at 200 million euros, while Kane's value is significantly more modest — 60 million euros.

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