Struggled for much of the match but lifted by their hero Jude Bellingham, England used their big-match experience to punish Erling Haaland’s Norway (2-1, after extra time) and move on to the World Cup semi-finals.
Struggling for much of the match but carried by their hero Jude Bellingham, England used their big-game experience to punish Erling Haaland’s Norway (2-1, after extra time) and advance to the World Cup semi-finals.
Back in the last four like in 2018, after a quarter-final exit against France in 2022, the English will face either Lionel Messi’s Argentina or Switzerland on Wednesday for a spot in the final.
Not at his best on Saturday, King Harry Kane was perfectly backed up by Prince Jude, who scored a double from his only two shots on target.In sparkling form, Real Madrid’s midfielder has taken his goal tally in this World Cup to six, half of his total in 54 appearances for the Three Lions. A hugely important brace on England’s path to glory, who have been waiting for a major title since 1966.
Perfectly positioned to pounce on the ball spilled by goalkeeper Orjan Nyland after a shot from Morgan Rogers, he sprang up to strike down Norway (2-1, 93rd minute) right at the start of extra time.
Thanks to him, the Three Lions – playing their third consecutive quarter-final – will experience a fourth World Cup semi-final, as well as a fourth semi-final in the last five major tournaments combining Euros and Worlds.Fans and regulars of these big events, the English showed all their experience by punishing the ‘Vikings,’ while they suffered completely with only one shot on target before extra time (Bellingham’s first goal).
Haaland and Kane struggling
Under the intense heat of Miami and in front of English stars David Beckham and Mick Jagger, not much happened during the first half-hour.
The first shot came in the 29th minute from a free kick well over Harry Kane, and the first shot on target was a header from Erling Haaland (35th minute)Much anticipated, the long-distance duel between the two star strikers never actually took place. The Norwegian, who was substituted during extra time, leaves the competition with seven goals, and Kane remains at six before the semifinals, with a goal disallowed for offside on Saturday (45+4).
Nonexistent at the start of the match and unable to get the ball out of their own half, the Norwegians took the lead with a superb 20-meter shot from the right by Andreas Schjelderup (1-0, 36th), who had already provided two assists against Brazil in the previous round (2-1).
Ten minutes later, the reply from the European runners-up came from Bellingham. Served by Anthony Gordon, the attacking midfielder showed off all his skills to get past the defense and beat Orjan Nyland with a placed shot (1-1, 45+1)..This goal got people talking on social media during the match, with a replay seeming to show the ball hitting an overhead cable holding a camera earlier in the play. But FIFA denied any contact between a cable and the ball, explaining that the sensors in the ball didn’t detect any contact.
Norway not realistic enough
Despite this loss, Norway far exceeded expectations for their return after 28 years away and dominated the second half against a timid England.
When the Three Lions had a big chance from a cross in front of Bukayo Saka’s goal (87th minute), Ståle Solbakken’s players came close to scoring several times: a save from Jordan Pickford (53rd), a goal disallowed for Haaland being offside (55th), a header hitting the crossbar (76th). And just before halftime (44th), Alexander Sørloth waited too long to pass to Haaland, who was one-on-one with the goalkeeper.But Thomas Tuchel’s men have always managed to get through so far: first when they overturned Congo thanks to a Kane double in ten minutes in the round of 16 (2-1) and especially when they came out victorious from the battle at the Azteca, after an epic match against Mexico (3-2). Their future opponent has been warned.
