Norway 1-2 England AET: Bellingham Brace Fires England Into The Semi Finals

After what was another excruciatingly tense watch for England fans across the country, Thomas Tuchel's men were able to get the job done once again, defeating Norway in a 120-minute-long battle that the Three Lions were able to come out on top of once again.

Although it was not necessarily the dominant performance that Tuchel and the fans would have been hoping for, with England once again on the back foot for large periods of the match, England got the job done, a sentence that has not been able to be uttered very much in the past.

Jude Bellingham proved to be the hero once again, producing another crucial brace to see his side through into England's first World Cup semi-final in eight years.

England Survive Once More

For the first half an hour of this clash, it looked as though England seemed to have a good grip on the game, dictating the tempo and looking fairly unthreatened by the Norwegians.

However, this took a sharp turn following the first hydration break of the match; the momentum seemed to take a major turn as Norway began to cause the Three Lions issues, with Andreas Schjelderup firing his side in front with a thumping strike following a rather contentious foul on Harry Kane. 

What then ensued was a period of dominance for the Scandinavians, with them coming close to doubling their lead on multiple occasions, but Alexander Sørloth's chance to square the ball across to Erling Haaland, which almost certainly would have ended up in the back of the net, will be the one in particular that will stick long in the memory of the Norwegians.

England found their way back into the game through a familiar face, Jude Bellingham, whose solo run and tidy weak-foot finish brought them level going into the break.

However, for the following 45 minutes, the Three Lions found themselves on the back foot, struggling to create any real chances, all while having to survive multiple breaks from Norway, including a heart-in-the-mouth moment as England momentarily found themselves behind once again, before the goal was ruled out following a push from Erling Haaland on Elliot Anderson. 

As the game trickled over into extra time, it only took England three minutes to find themselves in front for the first time, with Jude Bellingham the man of the hour once again, who was able to slot home following Nyland spilling the ball into the six-yard box following a thunderous Morgan Rodgers strike.

Djed Spece thought he'd provided England with a crucial chance to extend their lead, winning a penalty not long after Bellingham's second strike, but was ultimately overturned after it was deemed the Tottenham fallback was the one to initiate contact 

England were then able to take inspiration from their previous triumph in Mexico, as they saw the game out through another dominant defensive display, a job made an awful lot easier after the removal of Erling Haaland during half-time of extra time.

Bellingham To The Rescue 

After an iconic display in Azteca almost a week ago now, Jude Bellingham proved to be Mr reliable once again tonight for England, following another talismanic performance, producing another match defining brace.

Although what he offers going forward has proven to be invaluable to Thomas Tuchel's side, it's what Bellingham offers elsewhere on the pitch that makes him the true heart of this England side. 

After the removal of Declan Rice at half-time for Eberechi Eze, Bellingham was able to drop in and effectively fill the gap is teamate had left, covering every blade of grass and getting stuck into every duel required of him.

And even despite his role changing throughout the game, Bellingham was still there to deliver the knockout blow in extra time for the Three Lions, as they now prepare for their first World Cup semi-final since 2018 in Russia.

If England are to take one step closer towards history and find themselves competing in their first World Cup final since 1966, Jude Bellingham will almost certainly be at the heart of it.