England booked their place in the World Cup semi-finals after a grueling 2-1 extra-time victory over Norway in the sweltering heat of Miami. Thomas Tuchel\u2019s men had to dig deep in suffocating humidity, but once again, Jude Bellingham proved to be the talisman, scoring twice to rescue a jaded Three Lions performance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Norway struck first after 36 minutes when Andreas Schjelderup\u2019s looping cross-shot caught Jordan Pickford off guard. The goal stunned England, who looked sluggish following their previous exertions in Mexico. However, deep into first-half stoppage time, Bellingham provided the perfect response, latching onto Anthony Gordon\u2019s pass and driving a low finish into the bottom corner. The equaliser caused controversy, with Norway claiming the ball hit an overhead camera wire during the build-up, though FIFA sensors later cleared the goal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In a tense second half, both sides struggled with fatigue. Norway threatened and even had a Torbjorn Heggem goal ruled out after Erling Haaland barged into Elliot Anderson. Haaland, starved of service and well-shackled by the English defence, was eventually substituted in extra time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The decisive moment came three minutes into the extra period. Substitute Morgan Rogers unleashed a powerful long-range strike that Norway keeper Orjan Nyland could only parry, allowing the clinical Bellingham to pounce on the rebound.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Despite securing a semi-final clash against Argentina, Tuchel was highly critical of his side\u2019s “sloppy” and “lucky” display. Bellingham shrugged off the criticism, praising his teammates’ resilience instead. England now stand just one win away from their first final since 1966.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
My last bet involving England was for Mexico to qualify. I expected a massive test for the Three Lions, banking on the home advantage, the altitude, and the pressure from a solid Mexican side. I wasn’t wrong either \u2014 that’s exactly how it played out, with Jude Bellingham, Jordan Pickford, and Anthony Gordon leaving the pitch as heroes. For me, Bellingham put on the best individual performance of this World Cup so far.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I also correctly predicted that Norway would qualify against Brazil on my site’s tips section. As a Brazilian, I know my national team well. In my book, the only reason Brazil didn’t lose to Morocco and Japan was that neither of them had the counter-attacking threat that this Norway side possesses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Norway\u2019s win over Brazil will have their morale sky-high. Similarly, England showed serious grit by knocking out a host nation facing the toughest logistical challenge of the tournament.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Norway’s 2-1 win over Brazil was actually their worst performance in terms of Expected Goals (xG) this tournament, creating just 1.05 xGF and conceding their highest yet at 2.61 xGA – though that did include two penalties. That said, they were good enough to control the match with an incredible 66% possession and 681 passes completed; it made me feel like a Gibraltar or San Marino fan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
England won’t be as accommodating as Brazil were. They can, and likely will, dictate the tempo for large spells.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Both sides boast incredible frontlines and will undoubtedly play to their strengths. Every single one of Norway’s matches so far has seen at least three goals and BTTS. While the bookies have them as underdogs at 11\/4 to qualify and 3\/1 to win in 90 minutes, they have Erling Haaland, and he rarely misses out on a goal. England, of course, have Bellingham and Harry Kane, alongside some seriously sharp, quick wingers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
My Bet:<\/strong> Over 2.5 Goals & BTTS (Yes) @ 21\/20 on bet365<\/p>\n\n\n\n bet365pag2<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Jude Bellingham scores twice to rescue a tired England side against Norway and secure a World Cup semi-final spot against Argentina.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1923,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_kad_blocks_custom_css":"","_kad_blocks_head_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_body_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_footer_custom_js":"","_kad_post_transparent":"","_kad_post_title":"","_kad_post_layout":"","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false,"_kad_post_classname":"","footnotes":""},"cat_apostas":[109],"hub_relacionado":[112,113],"class_list":["post-1922","apostas","type-apostas","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","cat_apostas-fifa-world-cup","hub_relacionado-fifa-world-cup","hub_relacionado-picks"],"acf":{"hreflang_group":""},"yoast_head":"\n