Norway and Brazil Goalless at Halftime: Nyland Saves Guimarães' Penalty

Penalty after Video Review

The resulting penalty kick, however, was taken weakly into the right corner by Bruno Guimarães in the 14th minute. Nyland, who is without a club and previously played for Ingolstadt and RB Leipzig, guessed correctly and blocked the ball to the side. "That one doesn't go in!" the stadium announcer commented on the missed chance for Brazil.

Brazil subsequently took control of the early phase and worked a series of corners. A cross from Vinícius Junior was narrowly missed by Gabriel Martinelli, who had previously scored the late winning goal against Japan at the World Cup. On the bench sat Raphinha, who is back in the squad after his injury from the Haiti match but, according to coach Carlo Ancelotti, is to be rested: "If needed, he can come onto the pitch. But we will rest him and possibly bring him on as a substitute."

Norway with More Possession, but Without Penetration

Norway initially appeared surprisingly composed on the ball and had more possession than the Seleção in the first roughly 27 minutes, but lacked pace and ideas in attack. Erling Haaland, who has already scored five goals at this World Cup, remained inconspicuous in this phase. A long ball from Nyland in the 31st minute did not reach the striker.

In the 24th minute, there was almost a second penalty when Cunha was brought down in the opponent's box by David Møller Wolfe. This time, however, the whistle remained silent. In addition, the video review of the first scene revealed that Brazil's Danilo had previously fouled the Norwegian Nusa – an indication that a 0:1 lead for Norway would have been undeserved at the time of the VAR decision.

At approximately 30 degrees Celsius in East Rutherford, New Jersey, Elfath kicked off the match at 10:00 PM local time. For the 44-year-old American of Moroccan descent, it is his third assignment at this tournament; he previously officiated the matches Netherlands versus Japan (2:2) and Uruguay versus Spain (0:1), showing a total of seven yellow and one red card. At the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, he was involved, among other matches, in Cameroon's 1:0 victory over Brazil.

Lineups and General Conditions

Both coaches had made only one change to their starting elevens. For Brazil, Gabriel Martinelli replaced the injured Lucas Paquetá, while for Norway, Julian Ryerson moved into the right side of defense in place of Marcus Holmgren Pedersen. Neymar's name once again appeared only on the bench.

Norway had qualified for the Round of 16 with a 2:1 victory over Ivory Coast, in which Haaland scored in the 86th minute. Brazil, for their part, had beaten Japan 2:1 in the Round of 16, after Casemiro equalized in the 56th minute and Martinelli struck in stoppage time. In the group stage, the Brazilians won, among others, 3:0 against Haiti and Scotland.

Historically, the duel is positively remembered from a Norwegian perspective: In the last meeting at a World Cup, in the 1998 group stage, Norway won 2:1, after Bebeto had put the Seleção ahead early. Then as now, Ståle Solbakken sat on the bench for Norway – albeit for different reasons. It is also noteworthy that Brazil has been eliminated by a European opponent at every World Cup since their last World Cup title in 2002.

The winner of this encounter will meet the winner of the match between the co-hosts Mexico and England on Monday at 2:00 AM CEST.