Saka poised for impact as England face Haaland in World Cup quarter-final
The minutes have crept up quietly for Bukayo Saka. Now, on the eve of a World Cup quarter-final against Norway, he sounds like a man who has finally caught up with his own body.
“I think across the tournament my minutes have been building and building,” the England winger said, matter-of-fact rather than triumphant. He arrived short of peak condition, everyone knew it, everyone adjusted. “Of course I would have loved to have come to the tournament at 100% but that wasn't the case and everyone has realised that and has managed me in the best way possible, but right now I'm feeling great and ready to go.”
That last line is what England wanted to hear. Ready to go. Because the stakes have just risen again.
From Mexico chaos to Kansas calm
England’s escape against Mexico has already taken on the feel of a turning point. A night when belief hardened rather than just floated around as a slogan.
“For us, we believed and we believed from the start,” Saka said. The message, though, wasn’t really for the dressing room. “The belief was more for the people back home and them seeing us go through that adversity and see us come out on top was important for all of us.”
He talked about the squad as a whole, not the usual headline names. “How players that haven't been playing came on and the players that have been produced some big moments again. Everyone had their contribution and it was just an amazing night for us as a camp.”
The response since has been carefully controlled. Kansas City has given England a pocket of normality in the middle of a World Cup storm.
“There's been a nice balance between a real focus and intensity in training and when it's our downtime having that relaxed mindset and enjoying with the boys and our families in Kansas City,” Saka explained.
The celebrations after Mexico were allowed, even encouraged. Then the shutters came down.
“We discussed that we need to put the drama and the emotions of the Mexico game behind us now. We soaked in all of the praise and everything that came with it but now we need to focus on Norway which is going to be a tough challenge.
“Our spirits are high and we need to take it into the next game. We're fully focused and buzzing that we're winning.”
‘It’s about winning – that’s my mindset’
Saka’s role in this tournament has been fluid. Sometimes starter, sometimes game-changer. His approach, he insists, doesn’t move.
“Each game has been unique for me but my mindset doesn't really change much – I come on, whether I start or not, and I try and do what the game needs. It's about winning and that's my mindset.”
Norway, in his eyes, are no romantic underdog.
“Norway are a very good team – they play with confidence and a directness and that's been working for them so far.”
Directness, of course, is code for one thing: Erling Haaland.
O’Reilly: keep Haaland quiet, and England are halfway there
Inside the England camp, no one pretends Haaland is just another name on the teamsheet.
“Erling is Erling. We all know what he is like,” said Manchester City and England midfielder Nico O’Reilly. “He can score goals, he is dangerous in the box and he is a real threat.”
O’Reilly knows him better than most. He has seen the finishing, the movement, the sudden bursts of violence in the area at close quarters.
“I guess it takes a toll in it but I think keeping Erling quiet gives us a real chance to win the game,” he said. “Given all the threat he can cause, unbelievable striker, world-class. He showed that throughout the tournament, scoring in every game he has played in.”
Yet O’Reilly kept steering the conversation back to England’s own reflection, not the looming figure in Norway’s No 9 shirt.
“We are mainly focusing on ourselves and focusing on our game rather than his. We had confidence going into that game [against Mexico] and we have got confidence going into this game. We believe in ourselves, trust our abilities and we go from there.”
Haaland flips the pressure
On the other side, Haaland is playing a different game. Not just on the pitch, but in front of the microphones.
Asked if the pressure sits squarely on England’s shoulders, the Manchester City striker didn’t hesitate. “Yes, definitely,” he replied. “I think there's some clear favourites out there, England's one of them.”
Then came the nudge to the media, delivered with a smile. “I think all of you should put every single [bit of] pressure on the English lads.
“Yeah, they [England fans] should be confident of progressing, definitely. It's England.”
The context makes his words even sharper. Norway had not been at a World Cup since 1998. Now they are in the last eight for the first time, having finished second in Group I and then taken out Ivory Coast and Brazil.
“I didn't expect it. To be honest, to be in the quarter-finals with Norway in the World Cup is quite surprising even for me,” Haaland admitted.
“Playing against Brazil was kind of crazy for us Norwegians and to win against Brazil and then go and play England in the quarter-finals in the World Cup in the USA is quite special.
“It's difficult to take everything in because you need to kind of just play the game like it's a training session.
“I think if you watch the scenes back in Norway, this is not normal for Norway to be, so it's super special.”
He knows exactly how rare this is for his country. That makes him dangerous, not satisfied.
Fans split between comfort and nerves
Back in England, the mood is complicated. Confidence, yes. But not without a flicker of doubt.
On BBC Radio 5 Live’s phone-in, Freddy from South London didn’t bother to hide his optimism. “I don’t see England losing tomorrow,” he said. For him, Norway are a familiar puzzle, not an unknown threat. “In terms of a team that we could have played, a quarter-final against Norway is a team that we will know a lot about. We know a lot about their players. This will be our best opportunity to get through to a semi-final.”
He expects a match that feels like a “really high-quality Premier League game”, something England’s players will be comfortable in. “There will be a predictability about Norway that England will be ready for. England could not have been paired with a better team at this stage.”
From Leeds, Monica, a Norway fan, put it another way: Norway’s chances, in her view, live in Haaland’s boots.
“I think Haaland is an incredible striker. In some of the goals he has scored in the tournament, he’s almost at walking pace, doesn’t look like he’s interested in the game, then takes one or two big strides and big jump and brings it into the back of the net in a big way. If Norway is going to have a chance, we of course rely on Haaland being on really good form.”
Bradley, an England supporter living in Oslo, sits somewhere between the two poles. “A few days ago, I felt very confident but some little nerves are kicking in now with all the injuries and illnesses,” he admitted.
A night that could redraw the map
So it comes to this: England, a modern tournament regular in the latter stages but still chasing their first final since 1966, against a Norway side living a dream they never quite expected to touch.
Saka says he is ready. O’Reilly insists England trust themselves. Haaland wants the pressure piled high on the other dressing room door.
One nation is treating this as a rare festival, the other as a necessary step. Only one of them will wake up on Sunday with that story still intact.
