England’s World Cup clash with Norway is set to be another intense battle like their epic victory in the Azteca, a psychic claims. Healer Susanne Ertsland Askvik believes Three Lions fans will be put through the emotional wringer once more.
Just days after Thomas Tuchel’s heroes put in a gritty backs-to-the-wall performance against Mexico, they tonight come up against a Norway side high on confidence after knocking out five-time winners Brazil, with Leeds-born star man Erling Haaland in fine form.
And Susanne believes the game could be “memorable” and “will not feel like an ordinary football match”. She said: “The two teams feel very different energetically.”
Speaking exclusively to the Daily Star, she said: “One side appears to carry confidence built on structure, experience and expectation. The other feels more fluid, instinctive and unpredictable, capable of finding another level when belief replaces hesitation.
“The strongest image I receive is that momentum will become unusually important. Rather than one team controlling the match from beginning to end, I sense a game that unfolds in waves.
“I repeatedly receive the impression of at least one significant turning point—a moment when many people believe the direction of the match has already been decided, only for the emotional balance to shift again.”
She would not be drawn on picking a result, but felt the match would be remembered as one where emotional strength proved just as important as technical ability, adding: “The psychological dimension feels every bit as important as the tactical one.
“This feels less like a match that will be decided by superiority, and more like one that will be shaped by emotional resilience, collective trust and the ability to remain calm when momentum changes.
“I am drawn to the emotional landscape. There is one more impression that keeps returning. It is not about who wins. It is about how this match will be remembered.
“I feel people may initially focus on the obvious moments, but over time the conversation could shift toward one particular sequence that changes the way the entire game is viewed.
“The deeper theme I perceive is resilience. One team appears to discover something about itself under pressure. Interestingly, I also feel that the crowd itself plays a greater role than usual.
“The relationship between the players and the supporters feels unusually alive, almost as if the emotional energy inside the stadium becomes an active part of the story.”
All eyes will be on Norway’s super striker Erling Haaland, who admitted the World Cup quarter-final showdown would be a “funny game” because he was born in Yorkshire and could have been in Thomas Tuchel’s team.
Haaland was born in Leeds in 2000 while dad Alf-Inge played for the Premier League club. After moving to Man City, Haaland Snr hung up his boots and headed back to his native Norway with his superstar-in-waiting son – then three.
As a youngster Erling was even pictured wearing a replica England shirt. But back in Norway he vanished from the Three Lions’ radar and was recruited for the Vikings’ U15 squad.
He has played international football at every age level and since making his full debut aged 20 has scored 62 goals in 54 games for his adopted homeland.
His seven goals in four games at the World Cup have turned him into soccer’s hottest new global superstar. Now the Man City striker’s 6ft 5in frame stands in the way of England ending 60 years of hurt.
Susanne added: “Another image continues to return. I sense that one individual may become unforgettable—not necessarily because of statistics or goals, but because of one defining action at exactly the right moment.
“It could be a save, a pass, a defensive intervention or a moment of leadership that changes the emotional atmosphere of the entire match.”