Norway advances to the second round with Haaland’s late goal

Haaland leads Norway to historic feat

New Jersey.- Erling Haaland was the figure of Sunday when he scored a double that gave Norway a 2-1 victory over Brazil in the round of 16 of the World Cup. The Manchester City striker opened the scoring with a header in the 79th minute and finished with a left-footed shot near the end.

Norway is playing its first World Cup since 1998 and for the first time it reaches the quarterfinals. “This is the most important match in Norwegian history,” declared an emotional Haaland. “I think this will inspire a lot of young people.”

Goalkeeper Orjan Nyland was key in saving a penalty against Bruno Guimarães in the first half. Brazil pulled one back with a penalty from Neymar in the last minute of stoppage time, but it was not enough.

Brazil was eliminated before the quarterfinals for the first time since Italy 1990. Coach Carlo Ancelotti lamented the defeat: “We are deeply saddened. We have to find the right direction.”

Norway will face England next Saturday in Miami. The English advanced after beating Mexico 3-2 at the Azteca Stadium.

Haaland scored seven goals in the tournament, tying Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappé as top scorers. At 25 years old, the Norwegian has 62 goals in 54 games with his national team.

Coco Gauff defeated Belinda Bencic 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 in a match that was decided against the clock. At the All England Club, the 11pm curfew forced the match to be suspended if it did not finish on time.

With two minutes left in the deadline, Gauff served a winner on her first match point. Then he touched his right wrist, simulating a watch, to recognize the timing of the ending.

“I was looking at the clock in the last serve game. I thought, ‘I’ve got to hit some big serves and some big shots.’ That was probably the most dramatic finish. I’ve never had to race against time,” Gauff said.

The 20-year-old compared the play to Kawhi Leonard’s shot in 2019, which defined a seventh NBA game.

“I’m glad I didn’t choose basketball,” he added with a laugh.

Gauff had reached the fourth round in four previous editions of Wimbledon, including her emergence as a teenager in 2019. Now, for the first time, she will play the quarterfinals of the Grand Slam on grass.

“I definitely want more. But it’s a great achievement,” he said.

Her next rival will be Jessica Pegula, also an American and occasional doubles partner. Pegula beat Iva Jovic 4-6, 6-3, 6-1. Gauff anticipated a demanding duel: “It will be the third flat hitter I have faced in a row. The last two games gave me preparation for it.”

Bittersweet victory for Leclerc

Charles Leclerc achieved his first victory in Formula 1 in almost two years. It happened this Sunday at the British Grand Prix, a race full of incidents that ended behind the safety car.

The Ferrari driver overtook Kimi Antonelli at the start and remained in front. However, in the final laps he reported steering problems. Even so, he crossed the finish line first after the spin of Max Verstappen, who was third and fell to the gravel.

“Finally! This one felt particularly good, although I would have liked it to be a more normal ending,” Leclerc said over the radio.

The Monegasque jumped out of his car and ran towards the Ferrari staff. The excitement was such that they knocked down a barrier over their pilot. His last victory was in October 2024 in the United States.

Antonelli, no points again

The championship leader, Kimi Antonelli, had a weekend to forget. A bad pit stop relegated him, and then a Verstappen spin shook up the race. The Italian ignored his team’s pleas to retire the car and fought for the last few points, but received a time penalty for going off track with a damaged car. He finished 16th.

George Russell, Antonelli’s teammate at Mercedes, finished second, avoiding Ferrari’s 1-2. Lewis Hamilton, with fresh tires, was unable to take advantage of the final yellow flag and was third. The Briton faces an investigation for possible infringement under these conditions.

The race made it clear that the season is still open, with Leclerc recovering his winning ways and Antonelli seeing valuable points slip away.