Haaland hails ‘crazy day’ as Norway beat Brazil to reach World Cup quarter-finals
Erling Haaland described Norway’s win over Brazil as “one of the craziest days in Norwegian history” after scoring twice to send his country into the World Cup quarter-finals for the first time.
The Manchester City striker scored twice in the last 11 minutes at the MetLife Stadium as Norway came from behind to beat the Selecao 2-1.
“Maybe this will make history in Norway,” said Haaland after the match.
“Everyone just needs to have fun. This is just a crazy day. It’s one of the craziest days in Norwegian history. Enjoy it, embrace it and enjoy the moment.”
Haaland opened the scoring in the 79th minute through Andreas Schjelderup before adding a second with a powerful low finish in the closing stages.
Although Neymar converted the penalty into stoppage time, it proved too late to save Brazil from a shock exit.
The brace took Haaland level with Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe on seven goals in the race for the Golden Boot, while extending his scoring record to 14 games.
Solbakken praises Norway’s historic achievement
The Norwegian coach, Stale Solbakken, believes that winning may have a negative impact on the country’s football.
“I think all Norwegian citizens are facing the night of a lifetime,” he said.
“Some people say we’ve changed Norway forever. They’ll probably give it a week or so.”
The result ends decades of frustration for Norway, who lost in both the last 16 of the World Cup in 1938 and 1998.
Solbakken was also awarded a half-time substitute, with Schjelderup providing the assists for both of Haaland’s goals after being introduced in stoppage time.
“During the game, you have to make the calls and decisions that you think are right,” Solbakken said.
“It’s a gut feeling, Oscar [Bobb] and Andreas can make the difference, and I felt more secure when I had them on the field the way I wanted to play in the second half, then you saw what happened.”
Brazil was punished as Nyland shined
Brazil’s exit would be their first World Cup exit since 1990 and ends a remarkable run of reaching at least the quarter-finals in every tournament from 1994 onwards.
The five-time world champions had opportunities to take control of the game but were left with a series of missed opportunities.
Bruno Guimaraes failed to convert a first-half penalty after goalkeeper Orjan Nyland pulled off a fine save, with more space begging as Carlo Ancelotti’s side struggled to dominate.
Nyland, Norway’s 35-year-old veteran, did an impressive job, denying Guimaraes before pulling off another crucial stop for Endrick late in the game.
After the final whistle, the Norwegian players and fans celebrated, with Haaland leading the celebrations in front of the traveling fans.
“I’ve reached the top score a few times in this tournament,” said Haaland.
“But this was a new high.”
Norway will now face either England or Mexico in the quarter-finals.
