England are into the World Cup semifinals again after Jude Bellingham netted a brace, capped by a late winner in extra time, as the Three Lions beat Norway 2-1. It is their first appearance in the last four since 2018.
The Real Madrid midfielder has now struck six times at this tournament, level with fellow Englishman Harry Kane and behind only France’s Kylian Mbappé and Argentina’s Lionel Messi. Bellingham had already delivered a double in England’s round-of-16 triumph over co-host Mexico.
The 1966 world champions edged closer to another final date with this quarterfinal result and will meet either Argentina or Switzerland in the semis. Norway, appearing in a World Cup quarterfinal for the first time, opened the scoring through Andreas Schjelderup in the 36th minute.
Erling Haaland finished the contest blank despite seven goals earlier in the competition. Jordan Pickford had already kept him out once, and a Torbjørn Heggem rebound finish that would have made it 2-1 for Norway was scrubbed by VAR after Haaland was judged to have fouled in the buildup.
Even with England enjoying most of the ball, Schjelderup’s strike — via the woodwork — jolted the favourites. Bellingham’s near-range leveller drew a roaring response from the stands, among them David Beckham and Mick Jagger, after Schjelderup had celebrated putting Norway ahead and Kane had pleaded for a foul that officials waved away.
Moments before the decisive strike, England were involved in a disputed sequence when the ball interacted with an overhead camera cable. Bellingham then drove a low finish beyond Orjan Nyland to settle the tie.
Syndicated from Caribbean Life · originally published .
