Andreas Schjelderup broke a scoreless deadlock against England in the World Cup quarterfinal, curling home Norway’s opener off a disputed non-call on Harry Kane in the buildup.
The no-call fueled immediate comparisons to Egypt’s controversial VAR reversal against Argentina days earlier, reopening questions about how consistently officials police fouls that precede a goal.
Schjelderup’s Goal And The Foul That Wasn’t
Norway had never reached a World Cup quarterfinal before Saturday, and Schjelderup’s opener extended a run that started with a group-stage scramble and gathered steam with a 2-1 win over Brazil in the round of 16, according to USA Today report by Jacob Camenker.
Schjelderup’s finish arrived in the 36th minute at Hard Rock Stadium, according to ESPN‘s coverage. Martin Ødegaard slid a pass into space, Schjelderup picked Harry Kane’s pocket near midfield, cut inside defender Ezri Konsa and drove a left-footed strike off the underside of the crossbar, beating goalkeeper Jordan Pickford clean.
Kane wanted a free kick immediately. The Tottenham striker felt Schjelderup’s challenge in the buildup crossed the line, and English voices around the stadium groaned when the whistle never came. The referee waved play on, and VAR let the goal stand without a review changing the outcome.
Comparing The Call To Egypt’s Disallowed Goal
Four days earlier, in the round of 16, Egypt had a nearly identical sequence go the opposite way. Mostafa Zico buried a breakaway that would have doubled Egypt’s lead, only for VAR to flag a foul by Marawan Attia on Lisandro Martínez well before the play developed, according to FOX Sports‘ breakdown of the sequence. The goal was wiped off the board.
Analyst Rob Green argued the review reached too far downfield, contending that “someone stepping on someone’s toe is not why VAR was brought into the game,” as quoted by FOX Sports.
Fellow analyst Joe Machnik disagreed, arguing the foul in the attacking phase justified the call regardless of field position. Argentina survived the ensuing free kick, then leaned on a late Lionel Messi equalizer to pull level at 2-2.
Norway got no such review Saturday, and no explanation from officials clarified why the buildup earned different treatment than the one that erased Egypt’s second goal. Whether that reflects a genuine distinction between the two challenges or simply inconsistent application of the phase-of-play standard, England will spend the tournament’s biggest week wondering.
But England went into the half after equalizing on a Jude Bellingham goal, taking some of the sting out of the controversial non-call.
Norway’s dilemma on the left flank had lingered for weeks. Schjelderup and Antonio Nusa both pushed for the same starting spot, and Ståle Solbakken picked Schjelderup after his halftime introduction sparked the win over Brazil, according to Sky Sports‘ Laura Hunter and Nick Wright. The Benfica winger already had a hand in both Erling Haaland goals in that round of 16 victory, pushing his tournament total to three assists in limited minutes.
Should Andreas Schjelderup’s Goal Against England Have Counted?