Erling Haaland concedes he could have represented England but declares he is "proud" to be playing for Norway.
The Manchester City striker is one of football's megastars and is poised to enjoy a trophy-laden career. His club efforts could see him go down as one of the game's greatest following his blistering start at such a young age. On the international stage, though, Haaland could have more of a quiet time.
Norway are by no means major players and the 22-year-old is arguably the biggest star to miss the World Cup after his country failed to qualify. Haaland and Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard are the nation's leading lights, but they have only made the World Cup finals three times and the Euros once.
Had Haaland chosen to play for England, the country of his birth, he could be spearheading their bid this winter alongside Harry Kane and Co., but he insists has no regrets over his international allegiance.
He told Goal : "I lived here [England] for three-and-a-half, four years. But I lived in Norway for such a long time, so it was natural for me to choose Norway. You never know how it might have been if my father [Alf-Inge] had played longer in England, maybe I would be English! But I'm Norwegian, and I'm proud of it."
Haaland has already scored 21 times for his country and, as he continues to break records, becoming Norway's all-time leading goalscorer is no doubt on his agenda. Jorgan Juve, a player from the 1930s, leads the way with 33 - a very attainable target.
Will Erling Haaland break the Golden Boot record? Tell us what you think here.
At City, Haaalnd has made adapting to the Premier League look easy. Haaland has scored 18 times in 12 outings, which includes three successive hat-tricks at the Etihad against Crystal Palace, Nottingham Forest and Manchester United. The 32-goal Golden Boot record, held by Liverpool forward Mohamed Salah, is within his sights.
Haaland has joked about the prospect of defenders being scared of him, adding: "I don't know. You'd have to ask them. They'll probably say no, but maybe they are!"
Pep Guardiola has already backed his forward to claim the Golden Boot record, citing his relentless goalscoring nature. He said of the young striker: "We don't have to be a genius, if he continues in this rhythm, with the average every game, he's going to break the record, definitely.
"But football maybe you score and in a few days stop to score. I don't know. I didn't speak with him, I think he's happy when the team wins and not when they lose. All the strikers I seen in my career, Samuel Eto'o, [Lionel] Messi, Robert Lewandowski, Thomas Muller, Sergio Aguero, they have incredible ambition to score goals. It's normal. He has to be like that."
