2026 World Cup Shocker: Haaland Fires Norway Past Brazil As England Escape Mexico Scare

Erling Haaland inspired Norway to a stunning 2-1 victory over five-time champions Brazil, scoring twice late on to send his country into the FIFA World Cup quarter-finals for the first time ever.....KINDLY READ THE FULL STORY HERE▶

Brazil were left to rue Bruno Guimaraes’ missed first-half penalty as Norway punished their wastefulness in a memorable Round of 16 clash in New Jersey.

After being well contained for much of the contest, Haaland finally made his mark in the 79th minute. The Manchester City striker timed his run perfectly to meet Andreas Schjelderup’s cross, steering home a composed finish to give Norway the breakthrough.

The Norwegian captain then sealed a famous victory in the 90th minute with a thunderous low strike from outside the penalty area that flew beyond Alisson, capping one of the greatest nights in Norwegian football history.

Brazil grabbed a consolation goal deep into stoppage time after referee Ismail Elfath awarded a second penalty following Leo Ostigard’s foul on Casemiro. Neymar calmly converted from the spot, but it proved too little, too late as Brazil exited the tournament before the quarter-finals for the first time since 1990.

Haaland’s brace also took his tally to seven goals, drawing him level with Kylian Mbappe and Lionel Messi in the race for the Golden Boot.

Norway will next face England in the quarter-finals after Thomas Tuchel’s men survived a spirited challenge from co-hosts Mexico to claim a dramatic 3-2 victory at the Azteca Stadium.

The match began an hour late due to severe storms, but England quickly found their rhythm and dominated the opening stages.

Jude Bellingham silenced the home crowd by scoring twice in the space of just 98 seconds, although Julian Quinones pulled one back for Mexico before the interval to keep the contest alive.

England’s task became even tougher early in the second half when defender Jarell Quansah was shown a red card for a high challenge on Jesus Gallardo, forcing the Three Lions to play with 10 men.

Despite being a man down, England restored their two-goal advantage after Harry Kane converted from the penalty spot following a foul on Anthony Gordon by goalkeeper Raul Rangel.

Mexico refused to give up and earned a penalty after Kane brought down Brian Gutierrez inside the box. Raul Jimenez converted to make it 3-2 and set up a nervy finale.

Facing relentless late pressure, Tuchel responded by introducing Dan Burn and Djed Spence before switching to a five-man defence. England stood firm throughout 11 minutes of stoppage time to secure victory and set up a blockbuster quarter-final clash with Norway.