Wood v Haaland as All Whites lock in Norway fixture

Two of the English Premier League’s top scorers will go head-to-head this October when the All Whites visit Norway in Oslo for an international friendly.

The match on October 15 will likely pit Manchester City’s Erling Haaland, currently second in the EPL golden boot race with 19 goals, against New Zealand captain Chris Wood, the league’s third-highest scorer after finding the net 18 times for Nottingham Forest.

Should the All Whites triumph in World Cup qualifiers this March – securing passage out of Oceania and into the 2026 tournament in Canada, Mexico, and the United States – a clash with the 43rd-ranked Norway will form a critical part of the team’s build-up programme.

“We are fully focused on March’s Oceania qualifiers, but if we win and secure a place at the Fifa World Cup, it is critical that we face top players and opposition to put us in the best position to perform at the tournament,” said All Whites coach Darren Bazeley.

“We absolutely are not taking anything for granted this March, but if we come through the qualifiers, we need to have a full programme of games lined up, so we have been working hard in the background to lock in some top-tier fixtures to really test ourselves against the sort of sides we could face in 2026.

“This Norway side has some world-class talent playing in top leagues around the world, so will be a real challenge but a challenge we embrace and are looking forward to.”

The All Whites will face Fiji in the semifinal of the Oceania qualifiers on March 21 at Sky Stadium, with the winner qualifying for the final on March 24 at Eden Park.

The victorious team from Oceania will automatically qualify for the Fifa World Cup for the first time in history after the tournament was expanded to 46 nations.

This article was first published on nzherald.co.nz and is republished here with permission