By Charles Maduka
Erling Haaland scored a dramatic late winner as Norway defeated Ivory Coast 2-1 to secure a place in the Round of 16 of the FIFA World Cup, where they will face Brazil. Amad Diallo had earlier equalised for the African side before Haaland struck the decisive goal in the closing minutes.
Haaland continued his impressive scoring form by finding the net for the 13th consecutive international match. He tapped home Patrick Berg’s cross in the 86th minute to seal Norway’s victory. Coach Stale Solbakken made 10 changes from the side that faced France in the previous match, with all those players returning to the starting line-up at Dallas Stadium.
Norway started brightly, with Haaland seeing an early header blocked inside the opening three minutes. The breakthrough eventually came in the 37th minute when Antonio Nusa cut inside onto his right foot before curling a superb effort into the top-right corner. The goal made him Norway’s youngest scorer at a major international tournament.
The European side almost doubled their advantage before the break, but Ibrahim Sangare produced an excellent challenge to deny Haaland inside the penalty area. Martin Odegaard provided the assist for Nusa’s goal, becoming the first player since Dirk Kuyt in 2010 to register an assist in three straight World Cup matches. Later in the second half, his corner found Torbjorn Heggem, whose effort was brilliantly cleared off the line by substitute Amad Diallo.
Amad then inspired Ivory Coast’s comeback. Shortly after coming onto the pitch, the Manchester United winger exchanged passes with Nicolas Pepe before weaving past several defenders and finishing confidently to bring his team level.
Norway’s substitutes combined to restore the lead 12 minutes later. Oscar Bobb delivered a defence-splitting pass to Patrick Berg, who squared the ball across the goal for Haaland to finish from close range and score the winning goal.
Ivory Coast pushed hard for another equaliser in stoppage time, but goalkeeper Orjan Nyland made an outstanding save to keep out Amad’s powerful free-kick and preserve Norway’s lead.
Although Haaland was not heavily involved for much of the match, he once again proved the difference when it mattered most. He had only eight touches and completed just one pass in the first half, but still finished with four shots and extended his remarkable international scoring streak to 25 goals in his last 13 appearances for Norway.
The victory marked a historic achievement for Norway, who claimed their first-ever win in a World Cup knockout match. They also became the first European nation since Ukraine in 2006 to win their first knockout game at the FIFA World Cup.
Ivory Coast’s memorable first appearance in the World Cup knockout stage ended in disappointment despite creating more chances than their opponents. The Elephants finished with 14 shots compared to Norway’s nine and won 14 corner kicks but were unable to make their dominance count. Yan Diomande was unable to repeat his outstanding group-stage performances, while Amad Diallo impressed after coming off the bench.
Amad also achieved a notable milestone by becoming only the third player to score twice as a substitute in a single FIFA World Cup for an African nation, following Roger Milla for Cameroon in 1990 and Pape Gueye for Senegal at this year’s tournament.
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