Brazil 1-2 Norway - Haaland sends the giants home

Norway did not beat Brazil by pretending to be Brazil. They stayed calm long enough for Erling Haaland to find two clean moments, and that sent the five-time champions home.

Brazil 1-2 Norway is now official: Haaland scored in the 79th and 90th minutes, Neymar answered from the spot at 90+10, and Norway reached a World Cup quarter-final for the first time. 1

The first hinge came early. Brazil won a VAR-awarded penalty after Kristoffer Ajer caught Matheus Cunha, but Bruno Guimaraes' spot kick was saved by Orjan Nyland. 2 Vinicius Junior was denied, Endrick poked wide after coming on, and Nyland kept making the night smaller for Brazil.

Then Andreas Schjelderup crossed, Haaland beat Gabriel for the header, and the match changed shape. Eleven minutes later Haaland drove low from outside the box for 2-0. Neymar's late penalty made the score close, but not the tie.

This was not a simple smash-and-grab. Brazil had 14 shots and 2.73 expected goals; Norway had nine shots and 0.84 xG. But Norway put five shots on target to Brazil's four and controlled 66.4% of the ball. 2 That is the ugly bit for Brazil: they had the better chances, but Norway looked less afraid of the game.

Norway are no longer the fun Haaland subplot. They are in the last eight, with England waiting in Miami on 11 July after beating Mexico 3-2. 3 Brazil exit before the quarter-finals for the first time since 1990. 4

One-line verdict: Haaland did the headline work, but Nyland gave Norway the platform to believe.

Quote of the Day: "If I get a chance or two, it usually ends up as a goal. I don't know how I do it, but that's how I do it, so it's all about staying focused." - Erling Haaland 1