Martin Odegaard and Erling Haaland are caught up in a controversy affecting the Norway national team, following the release of private messages in a newly published book. Despite having stars like Arsenal captain Odegaard and Manchester City striker Haaland, Norway has not qualified for a major tournament since 2000. The book, *The Battle of the National Team*, alleges that the team used an โethically questionable loopholeโ to gain an advantage in the Nations League during the Covid-19 pandemic.
In a chapter called โThe Doctorโs Lie,โ it is claimed that in November 2020, after Galatasaray defender Omar Elabdellaoui tested positive for Covid-19, the team tried to evade Norwayโs health rules. The team doctor, Asle B. Kjellsen, allegedly allowed 19 players, including Odegaard, to travel individually from outside the country instead of together from Oslo, exploiting a legal exemption that applied to foreign athletes. Odegaard reportedly flew from Madrid, while Haaland traveled from Germany.
Private group chat messages between Odegaard and Haaland, revealed in the book and by Norwegian outlet NRK, show Haaland sharing a screenshot of a news article questioning whether the team could travel. Odegaard replied with a message containing seven Santa Claus emojis, seemingly mocking the situation. However, the preparations did not help, as Norway lost 3-0 to Romania and later drew with Austria. Responding to the allegations, Kjellsen told NRK: โSome may see me as a heartless doctor without ethics after reading the book, but I was loyal to my patients, the national team players.โ
The situation has caused friction within the team, especially over the leak of private messages. Genoa midfielder Morten Thorsby said, โWe donโt want things like this to be leaked. I understand the public interest, but private group messages should stay private.โ
Meanwhile, Odegaard is currently out of the Norway squad due to an ankle injury sustained during the last international break. Giving an update in Arsenalโs match program before their recent win over Southampton, Odegaard said he was making good progress. โIโve been improving a lot recently. Every day I feel better. Hopefully, Iโll be back soon. Weโre waiting to see how my ankle responds to training, but so far, itโs better than expected.โ