The initial fears were sparked by Solbakken during his post-match press conference in New Jersey. The Norway manager detailed the physical toll of travelling thousands of miles across the United States. He explained that Strand Larsen had suffered from a fever, while Pedersen felt unwell on the morning of the game against Brazil.
Providing full details on the situation, Solbakken said: “We’ve really only had Jorgen who has had a fever. But then there’s been a bit of coughing and rasping evenly, scattered throughout. But there’s air conditioning, flights, changing rooms and all that. We’re over 50 people so it would be strange if one or the other didn’t come.”