Jude Bellingham emerged as England’s hero after scoring twice in a 2-1 victory over Norway in the quarterfinals of the 2026 FIFA World Cup at Miami Stadium on Sunday, July 12, 2026. The Three Lions will now face defending champions Argentina in the semifinals.
The Real Madrid midfielder found the net in the 45+2nd and 93rd minutes, while Norway’s only goal came from Andreas Schjelderup in the 36th minute.
The Vikings actually scored twice during the match, but a goal by Torbjorn Heggem in the 55th minute from a corner kick was disallowed. After reviewing the incident through the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) system, the referee ruled that Erling Haaland had fouled Elliot Anderson before the goal was scored.
Although Norway failed to reach the semifinals, its campaign at the 2026 FIFA World Cup deserves high praise, as it marked the nation’s first-ever appearance in the quarterfinals.
England head coach Thomas Tuchel admitted that his team was fortunate to come away with the victory. Despite advancing to the semifinals, he was far from satisfied with his players’ performance.
“Today we made things difficult for ourselves. The result is fantastic because we’ve reached the semifinals, but I’m not happy with our performance. We were lucky today. We have to play better,” Tuchel said, as quoted by FIFA’s official website.
The German manager stressed that England cannot afford to repeat the same level of performance if they hope to progress further in the tournament. According to him, reaching the semifinals should not prevent the team from recognizing the shortcomings they displayed against Norway.
Match hero Jude Bellingham said England’s victory was built on the team’s determination and refusal to give up after falling behind.
“Character and resilience got us through this match. Even when we weren’t playing well, we gave everything,” he said.
He also credited England’s supporters for helping the team reach the semifinals.
“The whole country shares in this victory, including everyone who has always stood behind us and the team staff,” Bellingham added.
His two-goal performance brought his total to six goals in the 2026 FIFA World Cup, placing him fourth in the tournament’s top scorer standings. He trails Kylian Mbappé of France with eight goals, Lionel Messi of Argentina with eight goals, and Erling Haaland of Norway with seven goals.
Proud Despite Defeat
Meanwhile, despite the loss, Norway head coach Ståle Solbakken was overcome with emotion and pride after his side was eliminated by England in extra time.
According to Solbakken, Norway’s run to the quarterfinals of the 2026 FIFA World Cup captured the hearts of many people, both at home and abroad.
“We competed at the highest level, and the decisive moments of the match didn’t go our way. But that’s football, and now we need a little time to recover. What is certain is that we are proud of this achievement,” Solbakken said.
During the match, Solbakken made a surprising decision by substituting star striker Erling Haaland at halftime of extra time. The Manchester City forward was replaced by Jørgen Strand Larsen.
“It wasn’t difficult to take Haaland off. I probably should have done it ten minutes earlier because he had completely run out of energy,” Solbakken explained.
In the fiercely contested match, Norway also had a goal from a set piece ruled out because of Haaland’s pushing foul. There were also reports inside the stadium suggesting that the ball might have struck a suspended camera cable before England scored its second goal. However, Solbakken refused to use those incidents as excuses.
“A lot of things happened today. And yes, we’ve seen situations like this many times at the World Cup, so these things happen. We simply wish England all the best,” the 58-year-old coach said.***
