Sorloth explains not passing to Haaland when Norway had golden chance vs England

Haaland-Sorloth

Alexander Sorloth has opened up on his failure to deliver a pass to a wide-open Erling Haaland during Norway's heartbreaking World Cup quarter-final defeat to England. Haaland was clearly in a good position to double his team's lead before half-time, but Sorloth opted to go for goal himself, a moment that proved to be a major turning point in the match.

A missed opportunity for a two-goal lead

Norway were leading 1-0 in the World Cup quarter-final against England when Martin Odegaard played a brilliant ball through to Sorloth in the 44th minute. For a few brief seconds, Sorloth and Haaland were two-on-one against John Stones, with Declan Rice and Nico O’Reilly desperately trying to track back. Most observers expected a simple square pass to Haaland for a potentially easy finish, but Sorloth slowed down and attempted to get past Stones himself.

The resulting shot was blocked and safely gathered by England goalkeeper Jordan Pickford. The failure to convert proved costly, as Jude Bellingham equalised for England just three minutes later. Former England striker and BBC pundit Alan Shearer was critical of the decision, stating: "Again England are lucky. Sorloth should have played through Haaland with speed much earlier. He chose not to do it, and then there was no way through. He ran straight into traffic."

Norway v England: Quarter Final - FIFA World Cup 2026

Sorloth explains his decision-making process

Speaking to the press after England's 2-1 victory in extra time, Sorloth was honest about his thought process during that high-pressure moment. "I take a touch and look up, and then I see that Stones blocks that pass. Then I take another touch, and that is too bad. I wait for him to make a move instead of me making him make a move," Sorloth explained. The Atletico Madrid striker insisted his primary intention was to find Haaland, but he felt the window of opportunity had closed.

Sorloth continued by saying: "The only thing I want in that situation there is to pass to Erling. Then it feels like that pass isn't there, and then I go for the shot." 

Solbakken bemoans fine margins

The crushing nature of the defeat left Norway wondering what might have been. "It's heavy, and it's those kinds of things you wish you could have done better," Sorloth told VG. "I know that new opportunities will come, but it's naturally heavy when it's on the biggest stage and we are fighting to get to a World Cup semi-final." Norway head coach Stale Solbakken was asked if the extreme heat and humidity in the stadium contributed to the lapse in judgement.

"It certainly could if you analyse it. Alex sprints at full speed for 40-50 metres, and then he looks for the exact time he should release it to Erling. He doesn't find it, and then it runs out," Solbakken said. However, the manager also noted the fine margins involved at this level. "It was a big opportunity to go up to 2-0, and again it's margins. I think it's a bit hard to blame the heat here."

Norway v England: Quarter Final - FIFA World Cup 2026

A historic World Cup for Norway despite defeat

Despite the bitterness of the defeat against England - who will now face Argentina in the semi-finals - Norway achieved their best-ever result in World Cup history by reaching the quarter-finals. This milestone is particularly impressive considering it was the national team's first appearance in the tournament since 1998. Previously, Norway's greatest World Cup achievements were reaching the round of 16 in both the 1938 and 1998 editions.

On an individual level, Haaland concluded his tournament campaign with an impressive tally of seven goals, placing him just behind the current top scorers, Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappé, who lead with eight goals each. In contrast, Sorloth failed to leave any attacking impact during the tournament, recording zero goals and zero assists despite featuring in five matches.