Norway vs. England: How long can Thomas Tuchel’s Three Lions depend on Jude Bellingham after reaching the World Cup semi-finals?

England have secured a place in the last four 2026 World Cup early sunday morning, thank you won 2-1 over Norway’s Erling Haaland.

Stale Solbakken’s side opened the scoring with a cross-cum-short from Andreas Schjelderup, before Jude Bellingham leveled the quarter-final for the Three Lions in first-half stoppage time.

The Vikings then had a goal disallowed following a VAR review for a foul on Elliot Anderson, and while Haaland was forced off through injury in extra time, Norway could not respond when England took the lead due to a mistake by goalkeeper Orjan Nyland.

Thomas Tuchel’s men advanced to the semi-finals after a tense game, but their game was once again less than solid, and it remains to be seen whether they can get through against the likes of Argentina, France or Spain.

Here, Sports mole looks at the difference between England’s result and theirs poor performance against Norway in the quarterfinals of the World Cup.

England was lucky to beat Norway in the quarter final of the 2026 World Cup

Three Lions fans will be celebrating their win over Norway over the next few days, but the reality of the game was that they could – and should – have scored at least two goals before Bellingham did.

After Schjelderup’s cross bounced off the post and into Jordan Pickford’s net, Atletico Madrid’s Alexander Sorloth squandered a two-on-one opportunity by failing to check the England keeper or pass to Haaland who hit the clinic for an easy finish.

If the Vikings had strengthened their lead, Tuchel’s team would have been forced to open up, leaving large gaps for Martin Odegaard and the Norwegian line to exploit.

Adding to the sense of luck was that Bologna’s Torbjorn Lysaker Heggem saw an effort disallowed just before the hour mark.

Referee Clement Turpin saw nothing of the goal in real time, but awarded Norway a corner after a VAR review, keeping the contest 1-1.

England manager Tuchel was furious with the performance in his post-match interviews, criticizing his team for “Technical Fouls,” while fans celebrated with the players in the background.

Ubasi knows that his side are yet to face any of the toughest teams in the 2026 World Cup so far, and he will be sure to instill this fact in his team ahead of next week’s challenging semi-final.

England’s run to the World Cup semi-finals has been easy – but they have made it look difficult

© Iconsport / DeFodi Images

England’s most convincing performance so far came in their 4-2 opener against Croatia on June 17, but even that raises questions about the team’s defensive weaknesses.

After that victory, the Three Lions struggled against a deep-seated Ghana – and would have lost if Pickford had been sent off or given a penalty against Ezri Konsa – before needing a brace from Bellingham and Harry Kane to beat Panama 2-0.

Adding to the doubts about Tuchel’s players is the round of 32 match against DR Congo, who led most of the tournament before England escaped 2-1.

The round of 16 was a similar story for the European giants, who held on for a one-goal lead over fellow countrymen Mexico in a 3-2 win at the Estadio Azteca, courtesy of a double strike from Bellingham and a penalty from Kane.

Norway are arguably the toughest opponent England have come up against this summer, but they are far from the best the tournament has to offer, and the Three Lions needed a good measure of luck to win in extra time.

Given that Tuchel’s side have not fared well in their six World Cup appearances so far – despite not playing a country in FIFA’s top 10 – fans would be forgiven for feeling apprehensive about facing world champions Argentina, third-placed France or European champions Spain.

Can Thomas Tuchel rely on Three Lions superstars Jude Bellingham and Harry Kane?

© Consport / Xinhua

It would be fair to say that England’s World Cup campaign has been fueled by their stars Bellingham and Kane, but relying on these two to make the difference in every game is not a sustainable strategy.

Highlighting the team’s level of confidence, Marcus Rashford’s 85th-minute winner against Croatia was the only Three Lions goal at this summer’s World Cup that was not scored by Bellingham or Kane.

The Real Madrid midfielder has netted four times in the knockout stages so far, almost single-handedly scoring against Mexico thanks to his ball and incredible free-flow, before netting both of England’s goals against Norway.

It was Kane who pulled DR Congo off, scoring a brace that saved his nation from the brink of elimination, and his second of the day was a special strike that will live long in the memory.

However, the Bayern Munich forward was an unknown in the quarter-final, his only role coming when he was denied his place in Norway’s first game.

It is also worth noting that this player, 32, has failed to deliver in important moments in the past, he missed a penalty against France in the quarter-finals of the 2022 World Cup, although he also wasted his team’s chance to draw with Ghana on the post, and saw his first penalty saved by Dominik Livakovic from Croatia in the group stage.

Bellingham has advanced to the 2026 World Cup, leading England to the semi-finals, but it remains to be seen how long his heroics will last given his efforts against Mexico and Norway in particular, and the impact it may have on his style of play.