Why Aston Villa's Ezri Konsa is primed to win Erling Haaland battle in England vs Norway

Aston Villa defender Ezri Konsa is set to line up against Erling Haaland when England clash with Norway in the World Cup quarter-finals.

England's heroic 3-2 win over Mexico at the Azteca has seen them set a date with the Norwegians in Miami on Saturday.

Stale Solbakken's side are truly embracing their label as 'dark horses' for this summer's tournament, and now they must be seen as genuine contenders to lift the trophy after knocking out Brazil in the round of 16.

The Three Lions haven't played Norway since September 2014, when Roy Hodgson's side beat the Scandinavian's 1-0 in front of a record-low Wembley Stadium crowd of 40,181 thanks to a Wayne Rooney penalty.

Now they will meet again for the first time in 12 years, and England's defence, of which many questions have been asked, will perhaps face their toughest assignment dealing with Haaland.

However, Konsa has already proven to Three Lions boss Thomas Tuchel that he can be an effective Haaland anti-venom.

Ezri Konsa nullified Erling Haaland in Aston Villa win vs Man City last season

Haaland is sitting joint-top of the golden boot race at the World Cup, with only France's Kylian Mbappe and Argentina's Lionel Messi able to match his seven goals so far.

Indeed, the 25-year-old goalscoring machine bagged a brace against Brazil in the game prior to England's match getting under way with Mexico, as his Norway side dumped Carlo Ancelotti's team out of the tournament with a 2-1 win.

The Manchester City talisman entered the World Cup fresh off the back of his second-best scoring season at the Etihad, netting 41 times in all competitions in 2025-26.

Of the 35 Premier League games he appeared in last term, he found the net 27 times, with few sides able to say they escaped a tussle with him unscathed.

Aston Villa were one of them, however, as they defeated Man City 1-0 on 26 October last year, on a rainy afternoon at Villa Park that saw both Konsa and Haaland play the full 90 minutes for their respective sides.

As per FotMob, Konsa had the joint-most defensive contributions (12) of any player on the pitch thay day, and also completed 95 per cent of his passes and took 78 touches.

The Villa centre-back also made six clearances, four recoveries, three interceptions, two blocks and one tackle, as well as winning one of his two ground duels.

As for Haaland, he was restricted to just 17 touches of the ball, and despite putting three shots on target, the City striker won just one of his three ground duels and took a mere four touches in the Villans' box.

Konsa may not get one-on-one battle with Haaland for England

So, should Tuchel look back on Konsa's performance against Haaland from this game, then the England gaffer will surely be filled with confidence that the Aston Villa man can nullify Norway's primary weapon.

However, the German might not afford Konsa with the opportunity to repeat his history with the big striker, as his right-back situation has gotten even worse after the Mexico win.

With Reece James nursing an injury, Jarell Quansah was given the nod to deputise at right-back at the Azteca, but his 54th-minute straight red card means he will be unavailable to play against Norway.

If James still can't go on Saturday, then Tuchel is going to have to decide between starting Djed Spence, Trevoh Chalobah, Dan Burn, Declan Rice or Konsa there instead.

Out of those options, Spence is the most natural right-back, but Tuchel has been seen getting very animated with the Tottenham man throughout the tournament, and it doesn't feel as though he's a player the German has unwavering trust in.

As a result, that could see him turn to Konsa, which in turn might see Burn rewarded with a start in Miami after his inspired defensive performance off the bench against Mexico, with his aerial prowess another possible Haaland antidote.

Either way, Konsa looks sure to be in Tuchel's side against Norway in some form, and amid all the jostling around at the back, the England manager should have complete faith in the Aston Villa man to do a job on one of the world's best strikers.