Jude Bellingham leads England past Norway after extra time

Jude Bellingham was the decisive player in England's 2-1 win over Norway in Norway vs England. He scored twice, finished with an 8.5 rating and stayed on the pitch for 111 minutes, all while avoiding the yellow card that would have ruled him out of the semi-final.

Bellingham's influence

The rating told the story as cleanly as the goals did. Bellingham's 8.5 was the highest England mark on the night, and his two finishes were the direct reason the tie swung England's way after extra time.

That output sits alongside his broader tournament form too. The brief total for him now stands at six goals in six appearances, which is a sharp return for a player who has carried so much of England's attacking burden.

Bellingham also said his mother had been warning him all week to watch his tackles, face and emotions. Speaking to mirror.co.uk, he said: "So yeah, I think she drilled it into me all week about being careful of that yellow card." He added that when the balance is right, "it makes it a lot easier."

Norway made it a real contest

The scoreline was tight because Norway were not passive at all. Ørjan Nyland made six saves, and Andreas Schjelderup posted an 8.2 rating with a goal of his own, while Martin Ødegaard supplied one assist.

Bellingham's own view was blunt enough. He said England had to "win dirty" against a side with Erling Haaland, [Martin] Odegaard, [Antonio] Nusa and [Alexander] Sorloth, and that the lads should be proud of how they battled. That fits the match flow better than any tidy version of events. England needed extra time to finish it, and Norway stayed in the game long enough to make the night uncomfortable.

England got the result in the end, but the main individual story was still Bellingham. The next step is a semi-final with him available, which is the part that will matter most to England after a 2-1 win that lasted beyond 90 minutes.