World Cup quarter-final (AET): England 2 (Bellingham 45+2, 93) Norway 1 (Schjelderup 36) England’s year of preparation for this World Cup was so serene that much of the drama centred around a shocking possibility that never really seemed on the cards. Might Thomas Tuchel actually pick Morgan Rogers over Jude Bellingham, whose behaviour Tuchel’s mother occasionally found “repulsive”? Few had considered what might happen if Rogers and Bellingham somehow joined forces. It was the combined powers of the rival number 10s that finally sunk Norway in the swampy heat of Miami Gardens. The winning goal in extra time showcased the qualities of the pair, Rogers coming on to the ball 30 yards out and hitting a ferocious shot that Ørjan Nyland couldn’t hold, Bellingham reacting faster than anyone else to slam the rebound past the stranded keeper. Nyland had been Norway’s hero against Brazil, saving a penalty and several more dangerous situations with what was generally hailed as the performance of his life. He couldn’t do it twice in a week. The same could be said of Norway in general. Their victory against Brazil perhaps marked the point when they subconsciously felt that, for this World Cup, it was already mission accomplished. The much-anticipated war of the superstrikers was a non-event, with Harry Kane flitting ineffectually on the margins and Erling Haaland as remote from the game as a hibernating polar bear in his ice cave. The decisive factor was the power and finishing quality of Bellingham, who scored twice to go level with Kane as England’s leading scorer on six goals. Jude Bellingham scores the winner for England in extra time. Photograph: Leonardo Fernandez - FIFA/FIFA via Getty Images England’s performance appeared to annoy their coach, who criticised their technical errors and suggested they had been “lucky” after making it difficult for themselves with their own mistakes. When Bellingham was told Tuchel had said England were lucky, his reaction was dismissive: “Whatever. Whatever.” The relationship between coach and star does not seem close, not that Tuchel will care if Bellingham keeps making the difference like this. All that stuff with Rogers seems to have fired him up nicely. Tuchel himself had been lucky to get away with some questionable decisions. His selection of Noni Madueke ahead of Bukayo Saka on the right was a disaster. The winger was withdrawn at half-time, along with the struggling and clearly unfit Declan Rice. The choice of Madueke over Saka was consistent with Tuchel’s systematic preference for physicality over talent. Maybe he feels he is honouring the ancient traditions of English football. There were moments when Norway had England at their mercy, but they paid the price for missing big chances and will feel aggrieved at certain decisions. “Well done Bellingham and referee” as Alf Inge-Haaland posted bitterly on X. England had started well and dominated the first quarter, but for once the water-break worked to their disadvantage. Stale Solbakken used it to wake up his side, they got a foothold back in the game, and in the 36th minute, Norway had lift off. Harry Kane was robbed in the middle by Patrick Berg, and Martin Ødegaard found Andreas Schjelderup on the left wing. Everyone was watching for Haaland’s movements in the centre, but Schjelderup surprised everyone by going outside Konsa and then lashing an astonishing shot over the flailing Pickford and in off the far post. Kane had stayed down in the middle trying to draw attention to the alleged foul until after the ball had already rolled out of the England net, and England now lobbied furiously for the goal to be ruled out, but the referees dismissed their appeal. The pivotal moments of the game occurred just before half-time. The first was a Norwegian miss. England's Ezra Konsa heads clear during the World Cup quarter-final against Norway. Photograph: Evrim Aydin/Anadolu via Getty Images You can see why Norway want Alexander Sørloth in their team. He holds off opponents as though they were small children and wins every ball in the air. He is a tower of power at set pieces. But he lacks many of the conventional skills of a winger. And on 44 minutes those shortcomings cost Norway the chance to go 2-0 up. Bellingham lost the ball just outside Norway’s area and Ødegaard’s quick pass forward found Sørloth in the right channel, with Haaland streaking away to his left and only Stones back for England. A typical winger in this situation would try to commit Stones and play it inside for the unmarked Haaland. But Sørloth, lacking the pace to convincingly drive past Stones on the outside, instead drifted inside on his stronger left foot, looking for an angle to pass or an opening to shoot. He found neither, Stones expertly reading his intentions, and Nico O’Reilly blocked his eventual effort at goal. Two minutes later Bellingham saved England with a brilliant though controversial goal. Nyland’s goal kick was aimed high towards Sørloth, but appeared to hit the cable supporting one of the TV cameras above the pitch and dropped short to Elliott Anderson. When the ball strikes something that should not be in the playing area it’s supposed to be a drop ball. Fifa’s line during the match was that the motion detection sensor within the ball had not registered any impact, but the diversion of the ball’s path on the video replays seemed more evident than on Croatia’s infamously disallowed late goal against Portugal. Who are you going to believe, Snicko or your own lying eyes? Anderson quickly fed Anthony Gordon down the left, and the winger played a low pass across the face of Norway’s box that was beautifully weighted into the path of Bellingham, arriving from deep like an express train. But this particular train proceeded to show stunning ball control, rounding the Norwegian defenders with three precise touches before arrowing an angled shot under Nyland for 1-1. Almost immediately England had the ball in the net again, after Bellingham’s subtle pass released Kane in behind to chip Nyland, but this time the officials spotted Kane was offside.Madueke had been actively bad in the first half, the unfit Rice just passively bad. Neither reappeared after half time, with Saka and Eze taking their places. Faced with a new midfield combination of Bellingham and Anderson, Norway took control. Jude Bellingham of England is congratulated by Norway's Erling Haaland after the game. Photograph: Richard Pelham/Getty Images Some fumbles by Pickford had handed Norway a succession of corners, and as they prepared to take the third in the sequence the players in the box were doing the usual pre-corner jostling. Haaland pushed his marker Anderson once in the chest, Anderson raised his arms and screamed at the referee. Haaland pushed him again and the most expensive English footballer in history flopped backwards, again screaming to the officials. The ball was flicked on, deflected, and at the back post Heggem bundled joyfully into an empty net. But the officials decided Haaland had treated Anderson too roughly, and disallowed the goal. The game restarted with another Norway corner, as Anderson’s flop had happened before the initial corner had even been taken. At the second hydration break, Solbakken made his favourite double-winger substitution, with Oscar Bobb for Sørloth on the right and Antonio Nusa for Schjelderup on the left. Could Norway’s dribblers unbalance the tiring English defence? This was the moment of maximum promise for Norway, with fresh wingers attacking tiring opponents who had lost control of the game. Tuchel sent on Reece James to play in midfield alongside Anderson, but to do so he had to take off Anthony Gordon, who had been a thorn in Norway’s side. But the opportunity passed Norway by. Bobb and Nusa’s raids into the area never found Haaland. The big bear never came out to feed. Nyland came close to losing it for Norway in the most farcical manner in second-half injury time, allowing Spence to charge him down and block his attempted clearance almost into the net. But three minutes into extra time he fumbled that Rogers shot and Bellingham struck the winner. Haaland was withdrawn at the end of the first half of extra time. For whatever reason he had been a shadow of his usual self, but when he vanished from the field, so did Norway’s belief in the possibility of an equaliser. England closed it out and go to Atlanta for the semi-final. World Cup Wallchart