After a gritting win over Mexico in the last round, the Three Lions come up against an in-form Norway led by Erling Haaland
Confidence is high in the England camp after their victory in Mexico City against the co-hosts. It was not their first real danger of elimination – that was against DR Congo when they needed a bail out from Harry Kane – but it was a game where they had to fight tooth and nail for the victory, breathing hard at high altitude and finishing the game with ten men following Jarell Quansah’s red card.
After Raul Jimenez’s penalty narrowed his side’s deficit to 3-2 with at least 21 minutes on the clock, it was nail-biting stuff for the England support down to the 11th minute of added time.
“If a team has heart and belief then it’s this team,” coach Thomas Tuchel said. “They did it on pure will. We just refused to give in on a level that is absolutely admirable.”
Bukayo Saka said the victory strengthened the group. “The spirit is high and became even higher after that game. How players that haven’t played yet came on and the players that have been playing and producing big moments did that again.
“Everyone had their contribution, and it was just an amazing night for us as a camp. We need to take that spirit into the game against Norway.”
Pushing forward 💪⏩ pic.twitter.com/deqtQOw4H0
— England (@England) July 9, 2026
Could England still be called the favourites when Norway beat Carlo Ancelotti’s Brazil 2-0 to book their tickets to this quarter-final tie? Some might still say they have the edge and England’s players are certainly confident and unfazed, not even by the prospect of facing an Erling Haaland in form.
“Erling’s Erling, we all know what he’s like,” said Nico O’Reilly, a young man who definitely knows Haaland, the two being teammates at Manchester City. “He can score goals, he’s dangerous in the box and he’s a real threat. But they need to get the ball there first.”
In a way, this is a matchup of two sides with players quite a number of whom know a fair bit about each other. Tasked with getting the ball to Haaland from midfield will be Martin Odegaard, who captains Arsenal but will here come up against two of his teammates in Declan Rice and Bukayo Saka.
“He’s been great,” Saka said. “He’s been in good form, not just him, his teammates, too. We’ll focus on them as a collective, because they’re in good form, and they’ve been good this tournament. But we know our strengths and we’re focused on winning the game.”
The 24-year-old has been carefully managed throughout the tournament after arriving with an achilles issue. He admitted he was gambling on his fitness during the group stages but believes his form is improving. Saka has provided three assists so far but was the player who had to be sacrificed after Quansah’s red card against Mexico, in part due to his current fitness levels.
“Across the tournament, my minutes have been building – I’m building,” Saka said. “Of course, I would have loved to come to this tournament 100 per cent, but that wasn’t the case, and everyone’s realised that, and they’ve managed me in the best way possible. But right now, I’m feeling great, and I’m ready to go.” So are the rest of his teammates.
