Sunday Mirror (Northern Ireland)
How meatballs and chocolate cake turned Dortmund ace Haaland into a goal star
ERLING HAALAND has always been hungry for success with a huge appetite for goals.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer might have missed out on signing football’s hottest striker for Manchester United, but it has emerged that the Old Trafford boss provided the key ingredient for Haaland’s rise to fame – Norwegian chef Torbjorg Haugen. During his time as Molde boss before joining United, Solskjaer signed up Haugen, who had cooked for Norway’s biathalon team.
And, in two years, she transformed Haaland from a puny 16-year-old to a 6ft 4in powerhouse, who is terrorising Europe’s best defenders with Borussia Dortmund.
Many believe Haaland’s strong, athletic frame, allied to an instinct for goals, is propelling the teenage Bundesliga star towards becoming football’s first £200million striker.
And Molde chef Haugen (right) reckons it’s all down to her meatballs and chocolate cake!
Says Haugen: “He was a small, skinny boy when he first came to the stadium. I didn’t give him any special food, but he was a boy who grew – a lot!
“He was 16 when he came and 18 when he left. And in that period he grew such a lot it was amazing.”
Haaland enjoyed Haugen’s food so much that he used to ask for takeaways to bring back to the apartment he shared with other Molde players.
“He needed a lot of food. He would come to me after lunch and ask, ‘Can I get some food to take home?’,” said Haugen
“I gave it to him because I could see the boy needed it. His favourite was Norwegian meatballs and special small chocolate cakes – but only one!”
Haugen gets emotional remembering the days when Haaland was a relative unknown making his way up the ladder.
Welling up and wiping away a tear she said: “I still miss him a lot and I think it’s fantastic what he has gone on to achieve.”
Molde fitness coach Borre Steenslid had to carefully manage Haaland’s rapid growth spurt, knowing he had a huge star on his hands.
“Erling ate like a horse,” he said. “When he came, he was this young, thin, tall kid still growing – just skin and bone really.
“I thought it was going to be a project to get him ready for men’s football. He was 16 when he came, but straightaway he was taking it all in when it came to training.
“Especially in his first year, he started to grow, so we had to be careful.
“There was more for him to do in the gym to bulk him up because we wanted him to be injury-free.
“But his dedication was there and he had a different level of passion on the pitch, especially when it came to scoring.”
Haaland is ready to start training again as Germany heads towards a restart after the devastation of the coronavirus. During his time in lockdown, the teenager has reflected on his rise to fame – and he has no regrets about snubbing Solskjaer and United.
“When I got my first professional contract at my hometown club Bryne, I was thinking, ‘Yeah, it’s good’, but it was nothing great compared to other young players I could see.
“At Salzburg, I started scoring plenty, but I looked at Kylian Mbappe and he was banging goals in Ligue 1 for Monaco and PSG, so you can always reach a higher level in football.
“During my whole life, I have set my goals very high – that’s what I’ve been doing to this day.
“And being at Dortmund is everything I could wish for. When I walked out the first time and heard the Yellow Wall and the whole stadium was singing, it was fantastic, like a dream.
“When you are a young boy, you dream of playing in front of 80,000, but it was another level beyond my imagination.
“We have world-class players at Dortmund and we always talk a lot about football.
“I know there is going to be big pressure on me to score and I’ve created that with my performances.
“But the hype isn’t getting to me at all. It’s easy – so why not?”
He would come after lunch to me I and ask, ‘Can get some food to take home?’