Norway vs Moldova prediction 09.09.2025 | World Cup qualification

The last time Norway played at the World Cup was in 1998. Since then, they played in only one major tournament, the 2000 European Championship. That is 12 disappointing qualification cycles for the Scandinavian team in a row. 

Norway have a perfect opportunity to break the disappointing streak as they are at the top of the qualification group with four wins from four matches. Three points behind them is Israel, while the biggest team in the group, Italy, are third with six fewer points, but with a game in hand. 

Norway are currently on a run of seven wins in a row. On Thursday, they won 1-0 at home in a friendly against Finland. Although some important players like Haaland and Odegaard played only 45 minutes in that game, Norway still ended with an xG of 1.72, while the guests had only 0.19. 

Moldova have never played in any major tournament, which is unlikely to change soon. They are the last in the World Cup qualification group with four defeats in four matches and a 2:14 goal difference. Moldova are currently on a run of five losses in a row, including friendlies. In the previous game, Serghei Clescenco's team lost 4-0 at home against Israel. The guests dominated throughout the game, so Moldova didn't have any chance to get anything from it.

Norway have big problems on both sides of the pitch. Their only two goals in the qualifications came against the second-worst in the group, Estonia. On the other hand, Moldova are allowing too many goal-scoring opportunities to their opponents and they can't expect anything before they improve defensively.

After a terrible game against Israel, Moldova's head coach, Serghei Clescenco, was furious. He said, "On the pitch you have to work, but our first proper ball control came in the 51st minute. Can you imagine? We're playing for the national team, and we had to wait 51 minutes for a correct first touch. Before the first goal, we lost seven duels in a row. What tactics can we talk about under such conditions? I even had the impression that some players were waiting for Israel to leave the goal empty so that we could score. Even when they allowed us chances, we still couldn't finish."