Everything you need to know ahead of England vs. Norway World Cup quarterfinal
After five World Cup matches involving South American teams, South Florida will be treated to what should be a riveting All-European quarterfinal as England faces Norway at Hard Rock Stadium on Saturday at 5 p.m.
The game features a showdown between Norwegian star Erling Haaland and England captain Harry Kane, both of whom have been in top form and are chasing France’s Kylian Mbappe and Argentina’s Lionel Messi in the Golden Boot race. Haaland has seven goals and Kane has six, while Mbappe and Messi lead with eight.
England returns to the final eight for the 11th time and has advanced to the semifinals on three previous occasions. The Three Lions won the championship in 1966 and advanced to the semis again in 1990 and 2018. Four years ago, England lost to France in the quarterfinals and is determined to go further this time around.
Many experts and fans figured Brazil would be facing England on Saturday, but it is Stale Solbakken’s Norwegian team in its first World Cup quarterfinal after Haaland’s late brace knocked the Selecao out in the Round of 16.
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There will be plenty of club connections between the two teams. Haaland will face Manchester City teammates Nico O’Reilly and Marc Guehi, as well as former City teammate John Stones, while Norway captain Martin Odegaard is quite familiar with Arsenal players Bukayo Saka and Declan Rice (although he is not 100 percent healthy and questionable for the match).
In all, nine members of Norway’s 26-man squad play in the English Premier League, including five regular starters.
“Facing Brazil and England is facing two of the biggest nations in the sport in terms of history,” Solbakken said Friday at a pre-game press conference at Hard Rock Stadium, referred to as Miami Stadium during the World Cup. “Every Norwegian follows English football and has favorite teams and players. In the past, there was only one game on the tele every week, and everyone had a team or player they followed. Mine was Liverpool and Kevin Keegan was my man.”
The winner of Saturday’s match advances to the Wednesday semifinal in Atlanta and will face the winner of Saturday’s evening game between Argentina and Switzerland.
How they got here:
England finished atop Group L ahead of Croatia, Ghana and Panama, and then things got complicated. The Three Lions battled back from a goal down to beat Congo 2-1 in the Round of 32 with a pair of late goals by Harry Kane. Then, they overcame a rain delay, altitude, a raucous crowd of 80,000 at Estadio Azteca, and a red card to beat Mexico 3-2. Jude Bellingham scored twice, Kane added a PK, and the Three Lions playing most of the second half with 10 men after Jarell Quansah was shown a red card.
Norway was runner-up in Group I behind France and then Haaland’s heroics carried the team through its first two knockout games. He scored a late winner against Ivory Coast in the Round of 32 and a brace against five-time champion Brazil.
England vs. Norway Head-to-Head:
Norway and England have never met at the World Cup before but have faced each other 12 times, including during qualifying for the 1982 and 1994 tournaments. England has won seven times, Norway won twice and they tied three times. Their most recent meeting was in a 2014 friendly, which England won 1-0 at Wembley on a Wayne Rooney penalty kick.
Weather Update:
In addition to facing each other, the Norway and England players will also have to battle oppressive heat and humidity on Saturday.
AccuWeather meteorologists forecast afternoon temperatures in the low 90s before kickoff, and it will feel like 105 degrees. Hydration and fatigue will be factors both teams have to deal with.
Solbakken said earlier this week that weather will not be an excuse because both teams must deal with it and neither are accustomed to it. He added on Friday that the team has been managing the conditions by training lightly at a lower tempo since arriving in South Florida. “It’s all about being fresh on Saturday.”
Injuries/Suspensions:
England will be without Jarell Quansah after the Bayer Leverkusen defender’s straight red card for a high tackle on Mexico’s Jesus Gallardo. FIFA banned Quansah for two matches, so he will miss the semifinal if England advances.
Reece James is recovering from a hamstring issue. Jordan Henderson hurt his left forearm leaping over field-level billboards to celebrate the win over Mexico and is out the rest of the World Cup after undergoing surgery. Marc Guehi and Declan Rice trained individually, apart from the group the past few days and their status for the game is in doubt.
Norway left back David Moller Wolfe resumed full training after leaving the Brazil game early and is expected to play.
Norway possible starting lineup:
Orjan Nyland; Julian Ryerson, Kristoffer Ajer, Torbjorn Heggem, David Miller Wolfe; Patrick Berg, Sander Berge; Oscar Bobb, Martin Odegaard, Andreas Schjelderup; Erling Braut Haaland
England possible starting lineup:
Jordan Pickford; Djed Spence, Ezri Konsa, Marc Guehi, Nico O’Reilly; Declan Rice, Elliot Anderson; Bukayo Saka, Jude Bellingham, Anthony Gordon; Harry Kane
Where to Watch England vs. Norway:
The England vs Norway quarterfinal will be shown on FOX and Telemundo.
For fans with tickets to the match, here is a game day stadium guide that should answer all your questions.
Fans in South Florida have been gathering in South Beach, where two Viking Rows were scheduled Friday, the first at 2 p.m. and the second at 7 p.m. on Ocean Dr. and 5th Street. English fans had events planned in front of the Betsy Hotel. For fans who do not have tickets to the game, community watch parties are scheduled at Lummus Park (Ocean Dr. and 14th St), The Wharf in Fort Lauderdale (20 W. Las Olas Blvd.), and Nomi Village (12351 N.W. 7th Ave.)
For fans looking to watch the match at local soccer-friendly pubs, options include Fritz & Franz Bierhaus in Coral Gables (60 Merrick Way), The Auld Dubliner in downtown Miami (91 N.W. 1st St.), Mickey Byrnes in Hollywood (1921 Hollywood Blvd.), Mickey Burkes in South Beach (1265 Washington Ave.), Churchill’s in Little Haiti (5501 N.E. Second Ave.), The Clevelander in South Beach (1021 Ocean Dr.), Elbo Room in Fort Lauderdale (241 S. Fort Lauderdale Beach Blvd.), and The Leinster in Edgewater (1600 N.E. First Ave.)