The pass that never came
In an afternoon of several contentious incidents, Norway also had only themselves to blame for failing to cash in on a golden opportunity in their quarterfinal clash against England today -- a fluffed move, arguably one of the most intriguing talking points of the round, that they will be left ruing after their 2-1 defeat.
Playing in their first World Cup in 28 years, Norway had already captured plenty of attention after upsetting Brazil in the Round of 32, thanks to Erling Haaland's brace.
Against England in Miami, they looked on course for another famous result, leading 1-0 as the match approached halftime. Then, in the 44th minute, Norway found themselves in a golden counter-attacking opportunity.
It was a classic two-on-one situation. Haaland and Alexander Sorloth broke forward against John Stones, who was the only England defender back. With Haaland completely unmarked to his left, Sorloth instead chose to go for goal himself.
The decision proved costly.
By the time Sorloth carried the ball into the box, England's recovering defenders had raced back to close him down. Haaland continued to call for the pass, finding a pocket of space, but Sorloth attempted to dribble past two defenders before eventually getting off a shot that failed to even reach goalkeeper Jordan Pickford.
Had Sorloth slipped the ball across to Haaland, Norway would have had a golden opportunity to double their lead. Perhaps the result would have been very different from the eventual 2-1 defeat.
Throughout the tournament, Haaland had shown why he was Norway's talisman, scoring seven goals and carrying his side with a string of match-winning performances. In that moment, one simple pass may have been all he needed to produce another decisive finish.
Haaland made little effort to hide his frustration, visibly expressing his disappointment at his teammate's decision as the chance went begging.
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