After beating Estonia 4-1 on Thursday and then Italy 4-1 on Sunday, Norway have officially qualified for their first FIFA World Cup in 27 years. But given the presence of world-class players like Erling Haaland and Martin Ødegaard in their squad, how has it taken this long?

While few players in this cohort were even born when Norway beat Brazil 2-1 at the 1998 World Cup in Marseille , manager Ståle Solbakken, then a midfielder in Egil Olsen's famously pragmatic (some would say cynical) side, knows how it feels to represent his nation on football's biggest stage. And he has given this version of Norway its own identity.

"Football has obviously evolved a lot since my playing days, but this generation has the same drive and spirit we had," Solbakken tells ESPN. "Everyone loo

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