Norway advanced to the World Cup round of 16 after delivering a late 2-1 victory over Côte d’Ivoire in Texas on Tuesday, marking their first-ever knockout-stage win in the competition’s history.
Erling Haaland delivered the decisive blow, prodding home a dramatic 86th-minute winner from Patrick Berg’s cross to secure the result and notch his fifth goal of the tournament.
Côte d’Ivoire threatened early when defender Ghislain Konan surged into the Norway penalty area from the left but drilled his shot into the side netting.
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The Ivorians and their supporters grew furious just before the cooling break after livewire forward Yan Diomande was fouled on a counterattack inside his own half, yet referee Jesus Valenzuela surprisingly issued no card to Norway defender David Moller Wolfe.
The 19-year-old winger Diomande, poised to join European champions Paris Saint-Germain from RB Leipzig, steadily imposed himself on the contest. As one of the tournament’s youngest squads, the Africans dominated proceedings and looked especially dangerous along Diomande’s left flank.
Haaland saw limited service but should have done better with a weak header that goalkeeper Yahia Fofana gathered comfortably. Then Antonio Nusa produced a moment of pure brilliance, collecting a pass from captain Martin Ødegaard, cutting inside, and curling a magnificent effort into the top corner.
Ståle Solbakken’s Norway ended the half on the front foot, though Ibrahim Sangare made a desperate block to deny Haaland and celebrated wildly as if he had scored himself.
The Ivorians, appearing in the knockout rounds for the first time, earned their 10th corner at the start of the second half. Nicolas Pépé saw his attempt thwarted by the legs of Norway keeper Ørjan Nyland as Côte d’Ivoire maintained heavy pressure.
Norway, who finished second in their group behind France, came agonisingly close to a second goal when Amad Diallo cleared a corner-bound effort off the line. Moments later, Diallo danced past two defenders into the box and unleashed a spectacular leveller.
With extra time looming, predator supreme Haaland rose to the occasion once more to shatter Ivorian dreams. Goalkeeper Nyland later produced a stunning flying save to deny Diallo’s powerful free-kick in the dying seconds, ensuring Norway’s passage through.
Norway now faces a formidable challenge on Sunday in New Jersey, where they meet five-time champions Brazil with a quarterfinal berth on the line.
Brazil reached this stage by overcoming a stern test in the round of 32 against Japan. The Japanese took a shock lead in the 29th minute through Kaishu Sano’s long-range effort. Brazil, however, responded strongly, equalizing via Casemiro’s powerful header in the 56th minute. In a heart-stopping finish, Gabriel Martinelli scored a dramatic winner deep in stoppage time (95th minute), securing a 2-1 triumph and advancing the Seleção.