Heading into this summer’s FIFA World Cup, many tipped Norway to be potential dark horse candidates. Considering the fact that this is arguably the greatest ever squad the country has ever assembled, it was not hard to see why many believed so.
With their spirited performances on the field, the Lovene fully lived up to the hype surrounding them. Playing in football’s biggest and most prestigious tournament for only the fourth time in their history, Norway made it all the way to the last 8, even beating the mighty Brazil in the process.
In the quarter-finals, they faced off against England. Though the Three Lions were considered slight favourites to progress ahead of the game, it was Norway that started stronger. They took the lead in the 36th minute, and even had a chance to make it 2-0 just before half time.
In the 44th minute, Norway launched a swift counter attack and Martin Odegaard released Alexander Sorloth into space with a first time pass. With only John Stones on the cover, Sorloth and Erling Haaland momentarily found themselves in a two-on-one situation. Had Sorloth somehow played a square ball, Haaland would have had only goalkeeper Jordan Pickford to beat.
Instead, Sorloth delayed the pass seeing as the angle was too tight, and England’s defenders quickly got back to defuse the situation.
The Norwegians were ultimately left to rue missed chances, as Jude Bellingham went on to score twice and turn the game on it’s head.
Just like the players, fans were extremely disappointed after Norway bowed out, and many frustrated supporters blamed Sorloth’s poor decision making for the heartbreaking loss. Many users on social media have targeted the striker as a result.
In a rather unfortunate development, it seems Alexander Sorloth’s partner, Lena Selnes, is also being subjected to abuse. She posted an Instagram story on Sunday, calling out some of the trolls that have been leaving hate comments on her posts.
“The World Cup and football bring a lot of joy, but also a lot of hate. I really didn’t want to give this any attention, but I feel I have to after seeing comments like these. I hope everyone will think twice before making comments like these, no matter the situation. 🤝❤️,” Selnes captioned her story in Norwegian.
Credit: Instagram.com/@lenaselnes
The hate comments are especially apparent on her most recent post, where several users are referencing the golden chance involving Erling Haaland. Many of these comments have more than 1,000 likes each.
Credit: Instagram.com/@lenaselnes
In the aftermath of the loss to England, Alexander Sorloth has also gone on to explain his thought process in the fateful moment, during an interview with popular Norwegian tabloid VG.
“I take a touch and look up, and then I see that Stones is blocking that pass. So I take another touch, but it’s a poor one. I wait for him to make a move instead of forcing him to commit,” Sørloth said. The only thing I want to do in that situation is pass to Erling. But it feels like that pass isn’t on, so I decide to take the shot
“It’s tough. These are the kinds of moments you wish you could have handled better. I know there will be new opportunities, but of course it’s hard when it’s on the biggest stage and we’re fighting for a place in the World Cup semi-finals.”
For now, having their dream run at the World Cup will be a tough pill to swallow for players and fans alike. However, considering how they have gone toe to toe with teams much more experienced at this level, Norway can definitely look back at their remarkable journey this summer with a lot of pride.
