Key events<\/p>\n
GOAL! C\u00f4te d’Ivoire 0-1 Norway (Nusa 39)<\/p>\n
C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire have been the better side, but they\u2019re trailing thanks to an absolute stunner from Nusa, who dribbles into the box from the left, opens his body, and curls an unstoppable shot around the defender, across the keeper and into the top-right corner. Such a sweet goal!<\/p>\n
Share<\/a><\/p>\n 38 min: Berg and Nusa combine well down the left at high speed. The ball\u2019s shuttled infield for Odegaard, who has options either side but decides to shoot instead. That\u2019s blocked easily enough.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 37 min: \u2026 and then Norway<\/a> launch their first attack for a while, Sorloth dinking a ball in from the right, Haaland sending a weak downward header straight at Fofana.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 36 min: Norway<\/a> spend a bit of time on the ball in the middle of the park, simply to take the heat out of the match. \u201cThe Ivorians are so calm, they remind me a bit of a Messi-less Argentina,\u201d writes Casiano Martinez. \u201cThey really trust their individual and collective ability on the ball.\u201d<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 34 min: \u2026 Diomande delivers low. The ball\u2019s worked to the other flank, where Oulai wins yet another corner. That one\u2019s met by Agbadou, who shins a long-distance attempt high into the air and softly down into Nylan\u2019s hands. C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire are really lively.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 33 min: Sorloth\u2019s heavy touch allows Diomande to tear off down the left. He slips a pass forward for Bonny, just inside the box; Heggem becomes the latest Norwegian to be forced into poking behind for a corner. From which \u2026<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 31 min: One corner leads to another, which leads to nothing. But C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire are very much on top.<\/p>\n Patrick Berg of Norway prepares to take a corner. Photograph: Julian Finney\/FIFA\/Getty ImagesShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a013.39 EDT<\/p>\n 30 min: A speculative Odegaard shot is blocked and C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire counter. Pepe curls a cross in from the right, and the ball sails over Bonny\u2019s head. But Pedersen is forced to concede another corner.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 29 min: \u2026 nothing of note occurs. C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire have had the best two chances now.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 28 min: The Norway<\/a> fans entertain themselves with the old Viking Row. But they fall silent as C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire nearly score, Diomande crossing from the left, Pepe hitting a cross-cum-shot back across the face of goal, and Pedersen slicing a clearance over his own bar. And from the resulting corner \u2026<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 27 min: \u2026 and that\u2019s the end of the bevvies.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 26 min: Boooooooooooooooo.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 25 min: Booooooooo.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 24 min: \u2026 and that\u2019s drinks. Emu palm wine all round!<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 23 min: Nusa turns on the jets down the left, surprising Doue into the concession of a corner. Berg curls it towards the near post but doesn\u2019t beat the first man. Diomande tries to counter at speed, only for Moller Wolfe to get in the way. It\u2019s a free kick, and should be a booking, but for some reason the referee deems the challenge accidental rather than cynical, and Moller Wolfe gets away with it.<\/p>\n Antonio Nusa (R) of Norway in possession. Photograph: Jeffrey Mcwhorter\/EPAShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a013.26 EDT<\/p>\n 21 min: Konan chops infield from the left, past the flailing Pedersen, and tries to catch the Norway<\/a> keeper Nyland out with a snap shot towards the bottom-left corner. He only manages to ripple the side netting. Not a great shot, but a fine run. He probably should have scored.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 20 min: Sorloth rolls a pass down the inside-left channel for Moller Wolfe, who should immediately send a low cross into the box, but delays for a split second and his attempt to deliver is blocked.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 19 min: Pepe one-twos with Doue down the right, then does so again with Kessie. Pepe nearly gets onto the final ball into the box, but Heggem comes over to get in the way and shepherd the ball out for a goal kick. Just in time. Crisp, intricate play by C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 17 min: C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire stroke the ball around the back awhile. They\u2019re really growing into this game.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 15 min: Diomande bustles down the left and wins a corner off Pedersen. The set piece is half cleared, but Doue recycles possession out on the right and crosses long. Diomande tries to take the ball down for a shot, ten yards out, but it\u2019s travelling so fast it\u2019s impossible to control. Goal kick.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 13 min: Sorloth bombs down the right touchline with purpose, but is stopped by Oulai\u2019s perfectly timed intervention. C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire counter, Bonny unable to control a pass sent down the right that would have seen him tear clear. But he\u2019d have been offside anyway. Both teams seem committed to attacking.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 11 min: Kessie sends a long pass down the inside-right channel for Bonny to chase. Last man Ajer comes across to intercept. Norway<\/a> counter, and Odegaard has the opportunity to find Haaland just to the left of the C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire D, but messes up the pass.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 9 min: Pepe sends a low cross in from the right, forcing Heggem to turn behind for the first corner of the match. Pepe takes the corner himself but it\u2019s no good. Goal kick. But after a slow start, C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire are getting into the match.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 7 min: Pepe slips Doue into space down the right. A long cross finds Diomande at the far stick, but the man of the moment can\u2019t get a decent header away, and the ball skims off the top of his head and away.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 6 min: Pedersen goes barrelling down the right again. He\u2019s eventually crowded out by the time he reaches the edge of the C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire area, but that\u2019s another eye-catching run. Norway<\/a> have started confidently.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 4 min: Diomande snaffles possession and embarks on his first run down the left. It\u2019s unlikely to be his last. He slips the ball forward to Bonny, who can\u2019t keep control and runs it out for a goal kick.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 3 min: Pedersen makes good down the right, reaching the byline and chipping into the centre for Haaland, who aims a downward header towards the bottom right. It\u2019s heading wide, but Kossounou blocks and clears anyway. Both of Norway\u2019s full-backs getting involved early doors.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 2 min: \u2026 and now Moller Wolfe nearly latches onto a pass threaded down the same flank by Nusa. But Doue is over quickly to cover.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 1 min: Norway<\/a> are immediately on the front foot, Moller Wolfe probing down the left. But there\u2019s no way through.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire get the ball rolling. A fine atmosphere at the home of the Dallas Cowboys.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n \u2026 meanwhile the latest from Norway<\/a> \u2026 \u201cJust popped in to the supermarket and it\u2019s much quieter than normal. Come to that, the traffic is also more like a Sunday too. Can\u2019t think why\u201d \u2013 Bob O\u2019Hara<\/p>\n \u201cHello from a former colleague<\/a> who just arrived by bicycle into Stavanger (from Hamburg). The atmosphere is building. Everyone is wearing red and blue and the beers are flowing, despite costing \u00a310\/pint. Locals are quietly confident\u201d \u2013 Miles Brignall<\/p>\n Stavanger now. Photograph: Miles BrignallShare<\/a><\/p>\n The teams are out! C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire are the designated home team, so they\u2019re in their first-choice orange, while Norway<\/a> wear third-choice white. Les \u00c9l\u00e9phants versus the Vikings. Glorious nicknames and the anthems are pretty good as well. Let\u2019s belt them out, and we\u2019ll be off in a few minutes.<\/p>\n \u266c \u266a \u266b Proud Ivorians, the country calls us. \u266c \u266a \u266b Yes, we love this land as it rises, Share<\/a><\/p>\n Pre-match postbag. \u201cThis one is an interesting game. Ivory Coast are a team who when I looked at squad before the tournament, I was surprised at the number of good players they have and they\u2019ve done well so far beating Ecuador and almost holding Germany (although yesterday might be putting that result in perspective). Norway are favourites but I\u2019ve got to think the resting of so many players against France and basically throwing that game has put them under enormous pressure today. Lose today and that decision will come under enormous scrutiny. I heard the great Phillipe Auclair on World Cup<\/a> Daily mention a lot of Norwegian fans were not happy with that and something like that can puncture the feel-good mood around a team. Despite all that, I\u2019m going for Norway to win 3-1 with Haaland getting at least two goals\u201d \u2013 John<\/p>\n \u201cWill be an engaging match and both teams are quite physical and pressing in their game. But can anyone stop Haaland when he is in his groove?\u201d \u2013 krishnamoorthy v<\/p>\n \u201cViking helmet horns versus Les \u00c9l\u00e9phants tusks. We have definitely reached the sharp, pointy end of the tournament!\u201d \u2013 Peter Oh<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Today\u2019s Football Daily newsletter has landed \u2026 and it\u2019s riffing, be-bopping and scatting on Germany\u2019s pain. Sign up now! Sign up now! Sign up now? Sign up now!<\/a><\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n There\u2019s plenty of time yet before kick-off, and I guarantee there\u2019s no better way to spend it than with our Then and Now photo essay. This is great fun. But who really did do it best? The choice is yours, though to set you off in the right direction, the 1994 versions of Brazil and Alexi Lalas beat their 2026 counterparts, Diana Ross trumps Shakira equally easily, and Maple, Zayu and Clutch can\u2019t hold a candle to Striker.<\/p>\n Valderrama, Chong, Los Angeles Stadium and Maradona. Composite: Guardian Picture DeskShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a012.46 EDT<\/p>\n Norway named almost a complete team of reserves for the 4-1 loss to France, and so only Patrick Berg keeps his place from that very particular starting line-up. St\u00e5le Solbakken welcomes back all of his first-choice men, so it\u2019s the same team that started the 3-2 win over Senegal, with the exceptions of Marcus Holmgren Pedersen, who replaces the injured Julian Ryerson, and the aforementioned Berg, who is in for the benched Fredrik Aursnes. Erling Haaland resumes his quest for the Golden Boot.<\/p>\n Patrick Berg<\/a>Share<\/a><\/p>\n C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire make three changes to the side that started the 2-0 win over Cura\u00e7ao. Emmanuel Agbadou, Ghislain Konan and Christ Inao Oula\u00ef come in for Ousmane Diomande, Christopher Op\u00e9ri and Amad Diallo.<\/p>\n Christ Inao Oula\u00ef<\/a>Share<\/a>The teams<\/p>\n C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire: Yahia Fofana, Doue, Kossounou, Agbadou, Konan, Sangare, Pepe, Kessie, Oulai, Yan Diomande, Bonny. Norway: Nyland, Pedersen, Ajer, Heggem, Wolfe, Odegaard, Berge, Berg, Sorloth, Haaland, Nusa. Referee: Jesus Valenzuela (Venezuela).<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n \u2026 and here\u2019s how Norway<\/a> have done. Two Group I wins for their main men, one heavy defeat for their B team.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n This is C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire\u2019s 2026 World Cup<\/a> story so far. A more than respectable performance in Group E.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n This is how we saw it from the outset. Not too much has changed. Plenty of time left for all that.<\/p>\n Share<\/a>Preamble<\/p>\n Can you imagine a future where C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire or Norway<\/a> are champions of the world? Yan Diomande on one team, Erling Haaland on the other, it\u2019s not entirely beyond the realms, is it? Two of the tournament\u2019s dark horses, these hipster-approved outfits, face off in Texas for a place in the last 16, and we\u2019re here for it. This has the makings of a classic, it could be so much fun. Kick-off is at 12pm local\/1pm EDT\/6pm BST\/3am AEST. It\u2019s on!<\/p>\n
If we have brought back liberty peacefully,
It will be our duty to be an example
Of the hope promised to humanity \u266c \u266a \u266b<\/p>\n
Furrowed, weather-beaten over the water,
With its thousand homes,
Love it and think of our father and mother \u266c \u266a \u266b<\/p>\n
Subs: Kone, Lafont, Ousmane Diomande, Seri, Singo, Seko Fofana, Adingra, Wahi, Operi, Diakite, Diallo, N\u2019Dicka, Guessand, Toure, Guiagon.<\/p>\n
Subs: Tangvik, Selvik, Thorsby, Ostigard, Larsen, Aursnes, Bjorkan, Thorstvedt, Aasgaard, Schjelderup, Bobb, Hauge, Langas, Falchener, Ryerson.<\/p>\n