Erling Haaland’s late goal was enough to see Norway through to the Round of 16 at the 2026 FIFA World Cup, eliminating the Ivory Coast in a thrilling 2-1 match at Dallas Stadium.
The Norwegians opened the scoring in the first half before Les Éléphants equalized with one of the great goals scored so far in this tournament, but it was Haaland who seized the moment with the crucial final goal.
After long periods in their own half to start the match, Norway broke the deadlock with a strike from Antonio Nusa that curled into the far corner. The 39th-minute goal was against the run of play as the Norwegians had largely been chasing the game for most of the opening half hour before starting to come into the match more just before Nusa’s effort.
Minutes later, Haaland nearly doubled the Norwegian advantage on a close-range shot that was blocked, resulting in a corner that the imposing striker just failed to get on the end of.
Norway took the 1-0 lead into halftime, having carried much of the play following the goal and feeling on top of the game.
