(HAA)LAND OF MILK & HONEY

"So I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey..." – Exodus 3:8

SATURDAY 11 JULY 2026

ENGLAND 2 NORWAY 1

Defeat for Norway!  Or was it?

Having written my shining portrait of Erling Haaland, I sat down at The Wheatsheaf to watch the match with some trepidation.  I wondered whether the weight of the world’s adoration, and thus expectation, might possibly act as psychological pressure, certainly for the team itself but particularly for Haaland. 

And in watching the game, I felt there might be some truth in that.  There was a heaviness, a slowness in the play, with Haaland barely visible.  True, two of his shots were well-caught by England’s goalie.  Another potential shot was seemingly kept from him.

And, after constant and extraordinary physical hassling by England defenders, he seemed to lose his composure and pushed one such defender away with both hands to the chest.  This was a clear foul, and very disappointing to see.  Because of this, Norway’s subsequent goal was disallowed.  I felt, at that moment, that Haaland had probably lost the entire match for Norway.  

Heat, hassle and expectation … all sources of physical and psychological stress.

But, even knowing this, I still felt a bit disappointed.  Many did, I think.  But why?  Is he not human?  How unfair to load such expectations on his shoulders and be disappointed when he didn’t live up to them!

It was interesting, though, to see his levelness and clarity when interviewed shortly after the match ended.  He had, after all, been retired from the match ten minutes from the end, and was seen sitting with what looked like deep, possibly tearful, emotion.

How did he, then, face the world’s press with such dignity and composure?

I imagine that, although he allowed himself to feel and express his emotions earlier, he did not allow himself to wallow in them and certainly not allow them to hijack his deeper sense of himself and his aspirations. 

So perhaps Haaland, in his humanity and apparent weakness, reminded me that it is what we do with our defeats, our weaknesses, in order to become the person we aspire to.  We cannot be that person all at once.  It is a journey, with perhaps not even a set or final destination.  As the Taoists say, “The journey of a thousand miles starts with the first step …”  

We grow, we learn, we evolve. 

From now on, he will surely continue gaining strength from his in-built values of respect, kindness as well as focus and determination.  He might have felt angry and disappointed, but his values (as well as a nervous system fed the optimum nutrients) will surely enable him to moderate those emotions with reflection and balance and care.

This is all is possibly what enabled  the humility and compassion he displayed for his teammate, who ‘apparently’ chose to keep the ball to  himself rather than passing it to Haaland.  Described by toxic Instagrammers as “jealous, selfish, hungry”, the teammate in question has spoken honestly about his limitations, limitations which led to the loss of a possible goal opportunity.  

Haaland himself has said, 

“I will never blame him for just one stroke because every footballer has taken some decisions they later want to go back and fix … No man wins alone and no man loses alone.  We win together and lose together.”  

I have seen it said that the Norwegians themselves are holding no grudges or blaming anyone for this result. 

Indeed, they have been celebrating even in their loss! 

Referring to Haaland someone commented, “He’s no hater.  That man is honestly what we should all aspire to be humanly speaking.”  

So, to conclude.  Here, in Erling Haarland, we have a man working, aspiring, to become physically, mentally and spiritually the best he can be.  He has been winning, and losing, and opening our hearts to an inexplicable joy and inspiration! Could he be showing us what it is to be truly hu-man?  He is still on his journey, and on that journey he will undoubtedly stumble or even ‘fail’. But seeing him taking failure as fuel is equally as inspiring as the excellence he usually demonstrates.

Somehow shame does not come into the equation.  Any possible sense of failure, for him, appears to be digested very quickly to then enable him to take the next step in the ‘journey of a thousand miles.’  Reflection, yes, but shame?  Shame is toxic and disabling.  On the other hand, reflection is enabling.  The willingness to reflect implies that the desire to grow rather than achieve (soul-stultifying) perfection is the important driving factor.