If there's a stage that's too big for Erling Haaland, we haven't found it yet. With a hat-trick on his Champions League debut for Red Bull Salzburg, a hat-trick on his Bundesliga debut for Borussia Dortmund, a goal on his Premier League debut for Manchester City and now two goals on his World Cup finals debut, Haaland inspired Norway to a 4-1 victory over Iraq. The 2026 World Cup may be just six days away, but it looks like it really kicked off on Tuesday, with Kylian Mbappé inspiring France to a 3-1 victory over Senegal, scoring two goals to make him France's all-time top scorer. Just over an hour later, Haaland made his first appearance at the World Cup and rose to the challenge launched by Mbappé, almost 18 months his senior, with a performance full of desire and the goals we already expected from him. Norway coach Stale Solbakken later stated: "You could see he lived up to the occasion - it wasn't too big for him. He had a good feeling before the game, the last training session was very good. I had a feeling he would do it for us today." Iraq coach Graham Arnold added: "He's just an incredible number nine. We dealt with him quite well for much of the game [but] at the end of the day, he's a top-class striker. Norway could surprise a lot of people with the team they have. They could go very far." Arnold spoke to Haaland after the final whistle and revealed: “I just said to him, 'You're one of the best number nines I've ever seen'. He's so strong, so fast and he's just lethal." Haaland had fewer touches in the first half than any other player, just 11, but his influence was immense as he turned in David Moller Wolfe's cross just a minute before half-time - Norway's first World Cup finals goal in 10,220 days. The last one, in 1998, occurred 759 days before his birth. Commenting on BBC One, co-commentator Stephen Warnock said: "One thing you know is that Haaland will always find the goal, do everything he can to be on the end of it. A simple shot for a man of his quality. It had to be him." After Iraq temporarily leveled with an Aymen Hussein header that had more than a touch of Haaland, the 25-year-old was rewarded for his determination to chase down a delayed pass as goalkeeper Jalal Hassan hesitated, and when attempting a stray cut-back, he sent the ball into the net. It seemed inevitable that the 55th hat-trick in World Cup history would follow, but Haaland was stopped by a Jalal block after pouncing on another loose pass late on, while his injury-time header was deflected into his own goal by Hussein. Haaland is the sixth player to score twice in his opening game at this World Cup. Warnock added: "He could be the player that makes the difference as Norway progresses in this competition." Haaland already has 57 goals in 51 appearances for Norway - his goals per game average surpasses that of greats such as West Germany's Gerd Müller and Hungary's Sandor Kocsis. In fact, it is the second-best average of any man who has scored at least 50 goals internationally. Only Poul Nielsen of Denmark in the 1910s and 1920s scored at a faster rate, with 52 goals in 38 matches. Former England striker Ellen White, who scored 52 goals for her nation, said on BBC One: "The quality and physicality around Haaland's box was at a different level. He wants to be the tournament's top scorer." Former Wales defender Ashley Williams added: "What impressed me was his determination. You could see what it meant to him in the way he pressed and did the less glamorous things. I would say he did more today for Norway than we see him do for Manchester City. If there is a criticism, sometimes he is a bit understated at Manchester City. Today, he took on a leadership role, he was taking the team forward. It wasn't just his finishing that he has, it was a good performance overall and one can see what it meant for your team to be in the World Cup.