England vs Norway: Did England Deserve the Win or Ride Its Luck?

Much to the frustration of England’s loudest skeptics, football may be edging closer to coming home at last.

England booked its place in the semifinals of the 2026 FIFA World Cup with a 2-1 extra-time victory over Norway in Saturday’s quarterfinal. The Three Lions avoided the drama of a penalty shootout, but the manner of the win still gave critics plenty to debate, with several key moments likely to fuel claims that England benefited from good fortune.

Former Denmark goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel was among those who felt England had ridden its luck.

“England, they’ve gotten over the line. Were they great today? No, absolutely not. I think Norway were the better team,” Schmeichel said on FOX Sports’ “World Cup Now.” “But England have, as I keep saying, this star quality. They have the small margins that go their way. And you have to pull those margins onto your way when you’ve got incredibly good players.”

Unsurprisingly, former England striker Peter Crouch strongly disagreed with that assessment.

“No doubt England were the better side. No doubt,” Crouch said. “They defended and managed the game the way they needed to, created chances and towards the end, they brought in substitutions. … That’s how you win football matches, and England did that.”

The numbers largely supported England’s case. The Three Lions edged possession 52% to 48%, led in expected goals 0.96 to 0.77, put more shots on target with eight to Norway’s four, and completed passes at a higher rate, 91% compared with 85%.

Still, England appeared to benefit from two of the match’s most significant moments. Its opening goal followed a goal kick from Norway goalkeeper Ørjan Nyland that may have struck an overhead cable. Had that been the case, the incident should have prompted a VAR review, but play continued without one.

In the second half, Norway’s goal that would’ve given it a 2-1 lead was disallowed after it was determined Erling Haaland committed a foul before a corner kick following a VAR check. 

Schmeichel was mystified that a foul was called on Haaland’s push of England midfielder Elliot Anderson on that play.

“If I get pushed over like that, I’d be embarrassed,” Schmeichel said. “It’s funny that the English used to hate that, but now you’re applauding it.

“I’m probably just a Danish who just likes tough football.”

Crouch, again, disagreed. 

“He’s put two hands on him, he’s pushed him over. I don’t know what more you want, it’s a definite foul,” Crouch said. “He’s got two hands on him and he’s pushing him over. What do you want him to do there? Stand there? You have to go down to get the foul. If you don’t, then you don’t get.”

Still, Schmeichel thought that England embellished contact for much of Saturday’s match. 

“They’ve had massive success in getting fouls, I’ll tell you that,” Schmeichel said. “It’s funny that 20 years ago, all the English used to hate it and say that the foreigners were diving.

“I feel like Norway has been very unlucky. There’s been some key decisions that have gone against them.”

As Schmeichel continued to iterate that England was lucky, midfielder Jude Bellingham showed off his star ability in the Three Lions’ win. He scored both goals in the victory, scoring on his weak foot on an impressive goal before his determination helped him score the game-winning goal in extra time.

With the two goals, Bellingham now has six goals in the tournament. He now only trails Lionel Messi (8), Kylian Mbappé (8) and Erling Haaland (7) in the Golden Boot race.

“Look at the players on that list … they don’t give you much defensively. Bellingham, he gets around the pitch,” Crouch said of Bellingham’s standing in the Golden Boot race. “He does his work. He makes clearances. He dribbles with the ball. He can set goals up and he’s got six goals. You believe he’s gonna score every single game now. I believe he believes as well.”

Bellingham has also scored four goals in the last two matches. He opened up the scoring in England’s impressive victory over Mexico in the round of 16, as the Three Lions are now onto the semifinals at the World Cup. 

“I’m so proud of the lads. Thankfully, I was able to go to into the camp and they’re such good lads,” Crouch said. “There’s a real togetherness. They’ve dragged themselves through what was really tough conditions today. They were amazing in the Azteca. They’ve performed when they’ve needed to. Their players have produced when they’ve needed to. It’s a semifinal for the England team. It’s incredible.”

And as for Schmeichel, former England women’s national team star Alex Scott has an idea of how to handle the haters like him. 

“We need to get Kasper some drinks later,” Scott quipped. 

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