England reach World Cup semi-finals thanks to Jude Bellingham brace in dramatic Norway win
NORWAY 1-2 ENGLAND (AET): The Three Lions came from behind as Jude Bellingham struck twice to seal a semi-final berth
Jude Bellingham - what would England do without you?
The Real Madrid midfielder was the Three Lions' hero AGAIN as he struck twice to fire England into the last four of the World Cup.
Thomas Tuchel's side had to come from behind after Andreas Schjelderup's fortuitous opener in the first half.
But Bellingham took the game by the scruff of the neck to drag his side level on the stroke of half time.
And after neither side could force a winner in the second period, Bellingham fired home from close range early in extra time to ensure England's passage into the semi-finals.
Despite dominating possession, England failed to carve out a telling opportunity before falling behind after 36 minutes.
Schjelderup picked the ball up on the left and delivered a cross which wrong-footed Jordan Pickford and sailed over his head into the top corner.
Kane wanted a free kick after being dispossessed on the halfway line but VAR saw no reason to intervene.
The Norwegians could have doubled their advantage when former Crystal Palace forward Alexander Sorloth broke but he failed to square to Erling Haaland and the danger was snuffed out.
Bellingham got his side out of a hole as he collected the ball on the edge of the area from Anthony Gordon. Bellingham drove past two defenders and struck left-footed across the goalkeeper into the bottom corner.
It almost got better for England on the stroke of half-time when Bellingham put Kane through. He dinked the goalkeeper but was denied by the offside flag.
Torbjorn Heggem thought he had put Norway in front early in the second half after Pickford parried a Sorloth header from a corner into his path.
But VAR intervened due to a foul by Haaland on Elliot Anderson as the corner was taken.
The Norwegians then had another opportunity to hit the front after the hydration break. Pickford punched a corner away but it came back in and Kristoffer Ajer headed against the crossbar.
Neither side could find a winner before the end of the 90 minutes but Bellingham stepped up to send his country into the last four.
Just a couple of minutes into the extra period, substitute Morgan Rogers fizzed a shot from distance which stung the palms of goalkeeper Orjan Nyland and Bellingham was on hand to sweep home the rebound.
England thought they had the chance to double their advantage from the spot when Oscar Bobb felled Djed Spence. But VAR overturned the on-field decision of a penalty.
All eyes will now be on Argentina's clash with Switzerland in the early hours of Sunday morning UK time with the winner to face England in Atlanta on Wednesday night.
Join our new WhatsApp community and receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.
Shoppers can now upgrade to the Sky smart TV that's 'designed for football' from £6 per month when taken alongside a Sky TV and Netflix package.