Norway vs England spidercam controversy after Bellingham's equaliser

Earlier this week we reported on the Kane foul debate in Norway vs England. The new argument came from the equaliser itself, when Jude Bellingham scored in 45+2 after Norway's players surrounded referee Clement Turpin over the spidercam-wire claim. Thomas Tuchel then framed the incident through technology, and Norway left Miami furious about what they saw.

Norway's case against the wire

Plainly, Norway do not think the goal should have stood. Sander Berge called it "ridiculous" and said, "It's ridiculous, this one with the wire." Martin Ødegaard added that he did not see the incident himself, but "margins were not in our favour today with some of the decisions."

Stale Solbakken went further. He said the referee had no signal and that FIFA's own system did not help the officials, but he still believed the ball had touched the wire because "the ball fell straight down, right in front of the bench." FIFA later said there was "no evidence" the ball had touched a wire, pointing to no peak in the connected ball's "heartbeat of the ball."

The other disputed moment also went against Norway. Torbjørn Heggem's second-half header was ruled out after a VAR review penalised Erling Haaland for a shove on Elliot Anderson at a corner.

Tuchel's acceptance of the technology

Tuchel did not see the incident himself, but he backed the idea that the chip in the ball should settle it. "There is a chip in the ball who can tell you if a hair touches it," he said, adding that it should be able to show whether a touch happened.

His other line was even blunter. "I'm not saying we are lucky to win, but we are lucky in decisive moments," Tuchel said. That is probably the fairest summary of England's night. England got the goal, got the decision when it mattered most, and still needed Jude Bellingham again later in the game.

The result finished Norway 1, England 2 after extra time in Miami, but the dispute that will linger is the one around the 45+2 equaliser. FIFA's sensor said no wire contact was detected, Norway say they saw one, and the two versions are still living side by side.