Erling Haaland produced a stunning late show as Norway eliminated five-time champions Brazil to reach the World Cup quarter-finals for the first time in their history with a score of 2-1.
The Manchester City forward had been kept quiet for much of the last-16 clash in New Jersey, but he delivered when it mattered most. Haaland broke the deadlock in the 79th minute, moving ahead of Gabriel to meet Andreas Schjelderup’s delivery and head Norway into the lead.
He then confirmed one of the biggest results of the tournament in the 90th minute with a powerful low strike from outside the penalty area.
Brazil pulled one back deep into stoppage time when Neymar converted a penalty after referee Ismail Elfath judged that Leo Ostigard had elbowed Casemiro, but it was too late to prevent their earliest World Cup exit since 1990.
The defeat left Brazil frustrated after they wasted a major opportunity to take control early in the game. Kristoffer Ajer’s challenge on Matheus Cunha gave Carlo Ancelotti’s side a penalty after 15 minutes, but Bruno Guimaraes saw his unusual run-up punished as Norway goalkeeper Orjan Nyland made a crucial save.
Nyland proved just as important as Haaland, denying Vinicius Jr after the Real Madrid forward capitalised on a mistake from Martin Odegaard. Brazil also missed another big chance after the break when substitute Endrick was sent through by Vinicius, only for the teenager to miss the target.
Norway thought they had made a dream start when Patrick Berg scored inside four minutes, but the goal was ruled out because Alexander Sorloth was offside.
The match was also built around the latest battle between Haaland and Arsenal defender Gabriel, who have developed a competitive rivalry in the Premier League. Gabriel kept the striker under control for long spells, with Haaland managing only a harmless first-half effort, but the Norwegian captain grew stronger as the game went on.
After almost reaching an Ajer cross in the 67th minute, Haaland finally escaped Gabriel’s attention to score the opener before creating his second goal himself. His double took him to seven goals in four matches, drawing him level with Kylian Mbappe and Lionel Messi in the Golden Boot race.
For Brazil, the result raises serious questions about Ancelotti’s future. The Italian, appointed in May 2025 after leaving Real Madrid, guided the team to qualification and has a contract until 2030, but a disappointing knockout-stage exit is expected to increase pressure.
Brazil finished with only 33.5% possession and relied largely on counter-attacks. Despite producing 14 attempts and an expected goals total of 2.73 compared with Norway’s 0.84, they failed to take advantage of their chances.