Ancelotti's Brazil Strategy: No Anti-Haaland Plan Ahead of Norway Clash
Carlo Ancelotti is not interested in drawing red circles around one name on the Norway teamsheet. Not even when that name is Erling Haaland.
Brazil’s veteran coach brushed aside the idea of designing a bespoke “anti-Haaland plan” as his side prepare for a bruising World Cup last-16 clash at MetLife Stadium on Sunday, a tie that will send the winner into a quarter-final against either England or co-hosts Mexico.
Brazil arrive with momentum but also with a warning fresh in their minds. They topped Group C, yet needed a stoppage-time winner from Gabriel Martinelli to scrape past Japan in the last 32. That escape has sharpened them. Ancelotti believes it has hardened them too.
“Our team is in an optimal condition,” he said, before immediately underlining the standard required. “However, we need to continue improving.”
No special trap for Haaland
Haaland is the headline act, the looming figure in every pre-match discussion. Ancelotti refused to indulge the narrative.
“I don’t think that there is such a thing as an ‘anti-Haaland’ plan,” he insisted. “I don’t need to tell my players how to defend, they have faced each other a few times.”
The message was clear: trust the structure, trust the defenders. Arsenal’s Gabriel Magalhaes and Paris Saint-Germain’s Marquinhos form one of the tournament’s most imposing centre-back pairings, and they know the Manchester City striker’s game inside out.
“Everyone knows how he works,” Ancelotti said. “I have nothing to explain to my defenders how to play against him.
“They have obviously played against him several times, so we are only focused on being well prepared for the match, understanding the basic characteristics of the opponent and we know that they are very dangerous offensively.”
Norway, in his eyes, are not a one-man show. “Norway is a challenging team, a team that has structure, has very good organisation, so we have to play at our best level,” he continued. “But I think we are at a time when we can play at our best level, because we are confident and have come out of a challenging last match against Japan.”
The respect is genuine. So is the belief.
Selection puzzles on both sides
Brazil’s preparation is not without complications. Lucas Paqueta, a key link between midfield and attack, is out after suffering a hamstring problem against Japan. His absence strips some creativity and control from the heart of Ancelotti’s side.
There is better news higher up the pitch. Barcelona forward Raphinha, sidelined by a thigh injury, could return to the squad and offer width and direct running against a Norway defence that rarely strays from its shape.
On the opposite bench, Stale Solbakken is fighting the same battle against simplification. For him, this is not Haaland versus Gabriel and Marquinhos. It is Brazil versus Norway, in all its complexity.
“Brazil has one of the best pairs of defenders in this tournament, two players who are at a top-notch international level,” Solbakken said. “There will be some tough duels between them and Erling, but it is more Brazil versus Norway for me.”
He does not hide from the scale of the task.
“Brazil are favourites, of course they are,” he admitted. “But we are hopeful that we will give them a match – and we must be at our very, very best, otherwise we don’t have a chance.”
Norway’s own fitness bulletin carries cautious optimism. Dortmund full-back Julian Ryerson is expected to be available after a thigh issue forced him off in their second Group I match against Senegal. Defender Holmgren Pedersen is being monitored after what Solbakken described as “coughing and rasping”, but there is no indication yet of a major setback.
Structure, stars and a quarter-final on the line
So the stage is set in East Rutherford: Brazil, chasing a sixth World Cup crown, against a Norway side built on organisation, collective effort and one of the most feared strikers on the planet.
Ancelotti refuses to reduce it to a single duel. Solbakken insists his team cannot afford to. Somewhere between Brazil’s swagger and Norway’s structure, between Haaland’s power and Gabriel’s timing, this tie will tilt.
One of them will walk out of MetLife Stadium believing a deep World Cup run is within reach. The other will be left wondering how close they came to rewriting the script.
