The Norway midfielder with the cellist father who overcame Liverpool rejection

Twelve years ago, Thelo Aasgaard's dreams were in tatters when he was released by Liverpool FC's academy.

His father Jonathan recalled: "I remember him being obviously a bit upset and I remember sitting him down and I said: 'Are you sure this is what you want to pursue?'

"He didn't budge at all. He was clear that that was not a question at all. He was going to entertain.

"Then we helped him to get on to the next step of his learning curve, which ended up being at Wigan Athletic."

Rangers midfielder Aasgaard is now in Norway's World Cup squad, alongside his celebrated team-mates including Manchester City's Erling Haaland, and Martin Odegaard, one the key players behind Arsenal's Premier League title success.

Aasgaard - who represented his country up to Under-21 level before breaking into the senior side - joined Rangers last July, having played for Wigan and Luton.

"It was when he played for Luton Town that he got a call up for the first time, in March last year. And that took both him and us a little bit by surprise," said Jonathan.

"He kept his place in the squad ever since."

His family waited in suspense in Liverpool as the King of Norway announced which of the country's players would be travelling to the finals.

"The King was broadcast live - via my brother in Oslo - and the family was here in Mossley Hill, and watched it as it happened," said Jonathan.

"It was a very exciting moment in the house that's for sure."

Aasgaard is one of three players at the tournament who once played for Liverpool schoolboys, the others being England's Anthony Gordon and Ipswich striker Ali Al-Hamadi, who is in the Iraq squad. Another alumnus is Anthony Barry, who is part of the England coaching team.

Al-Hamadi and Aasgaard could face each other when Norway play Iraq on Tuesday in their opening game in Group I

Jonathan, who was principal cellist with the Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, will have to watch the game in a London hotel at 23:00 BST, because he is playing a concert in the capital.

"Then I am flying over for the second game against Senegal. But my wife and my other children, they will be there for the first two games, so that's very exciting," he said.

He added: "It's absolutely manic at the moment in Norway. My brother, Oliver, in Oslo, he made a little film from the supermarket and he was kind of just filming all the products they sell, and every single product in the whole shop will have the face of one of the Norway players in the squad.

"So the expectations are very, very high. I've been racking my brain to see if I can link any cello music to the World Cup and football.

"The closest I've come is, I think, Zadok The Priest by Handel, which is used for the Champions League theme.

"I think if Norway was to win the tournament, I think Beethoven's Ninth Symphony or something like Ode to Joy is in order."