Inggris dan Norwegia Imbang pada Perempat Final Piala Dunia 2026

Pertandingan babak perempat final Piala Dunia 2026 antara tim nasional Norwegia dan Inggris berakhir imbang dengan skor 1-1 di Miami Gardens, Florida, pada Sabtu, 11 Juli 2026. Hasil sama kuat ini memaksa kedua tim melanjutkan laga ke babak perpanjangan waktu demi memperebutkan tiket ke semifinal.

Norwegia membuka keunggulan terlebih dahulu melalui gol Andreas Schjelderup pada menit ke-36 setelah menerima umpan dari Martin Odegaard. Inggris kemudian menyamakan kedudukan lewat aksi gelandang Jude Bellingham pada menit ke-47 setelah memanfaatkan bola di area pertahanan lawan.

Dilansir dari Fox Sports, laga ini berlangsung dalam kondisi cuaca ekstrem dengan suhu mendekati 40 derajat Celsius dan kelembapan mencapai 90 persen. Penyesuaian susunan pemain dilakukan oleh kedua tim, termasuk masuknya John Stones dan Noni Madueke dalam sebelas pertama Inggris.

Sebelum pertandingan sengit ini bergulir, para pemain dari kedua kubu sempat memberikan pernyataan terkait kesiapan dan hubungan mereka sebagai rekan satu tim di level klub.

"I wouldn't want anyone else being our captain. He can deliver on the biggest stage. We are always with Martin," kata Declan Rice, gelandang Inggris.

Rice tetap tampil memperkuat Inggris meskipun harus berjuang melawan rasa sakit pada punggung bagian bawah dan hamstring yang telah mengganggunya selama beberapa bulan terakhir.

"He's someone who always gives absolutely everything for the team, always fighting for every single ball, bringing his energy to the pitch. He can do so many things on the pitch," ujar Martin Ødegaard, kapten Norwegia.

Ødegaard tampil impresif sepanjang turnamen setelah sempat pulih dari cedera panjang yang mengganggu penampilannya bersama Arsenal pada musim domestik lalu.

"Together with Erling Haaland he's been our best player for a long time and a great captain when times were a little tougher than they are now," ucap Ståle Solbakken, manajer Norwegia.

Solbakken menambahkan bahwa Ødegaard memiliki peran yang lebih bebas di dalam taktik tim nasional dibandingkan saat bermain untuk klubnya.

"He perhaps has a little bit more of a free role in our team. That comes from the fact he has great experience. Maybe when he plays with Arsenal he has players with the same experience, with Rice and [Martín] Zubimendi they can share it a bit.

We maybe put a little bit more on his shoulders. I think he enjoys that, I think he deserves it," tutur Ståle Solbakken, manajer Norwegia.

Di lini pertahanan, pemain belakang Norwegia juga menyatakan kesiapannya untuk menghadapi gempuran penyerang Inggris demi menjaga asa lolos ke babak berikutnya.

"The World Cup so far has been more than I could ever dream of. The whole country has been super excited for it, and I’ve been preparing for it for several months; the way we’ve been playing in every single game has been fantastic. It’s been incredible to watch the country back home really, really buzzing for us and celebrating.

The results have been superb. We’ve played some really strong sides and been able to beat them, so it’s been great. The Brazil win... it’s not possible to describe the feeling I had and the team had after it.

They’re a fantastic country with so many top players, so being able to control the game in many aspects was surreal," kata Kristoffer Ajer, bek Norwegia.

Ajer menilai keberadaan Erling Haaland di lini depan memberikan kepercayaan diri besar bagi seluruh skuad Norwegia.

"Playing alongside Haaland is obviously fantastic. He’s the best player in the world, so having him in attack, you always have a chance. Hopefully he can score a few goals on Saturday as well!

Everyone’s really buzzing for the game, but it’s a very similar mentality to Brentford: we’re humble but confident. We know that we’re playing one of the big favourites to win the whole tournament and we need to top perform once again to have a chance to advance," ucap Kristoffer Ajer, bek Norwegia.

Ia juga menegaskan telah mempelajari pergerakan penyerang sekaligus kapten tim nasional Inggris, Harry Kane, secara mendalam sebelum laga dimulai.

"Kane is one of the best strikers in the world. The season he has had at Bayern Munich and the tournament he is having show that you have to be well prepared. We’ve analysed England, and we’re as ready as we possibly can be.

Again, similarly to Brentford, we take one game at a time. When you play these big nations, you know that if you look too far ahead, you lose the next game. We are fully, fully ready and only thinking about England on Saturday," ujar Kristoffer Ajer, bek Norwegia.

Sementara itu, penyerang sayap Inggris turut memuji kualitas kolektif yang dimiliki oleh skuad Norwegia sebelum kedua tim berduel di lapangan.

"Everyone knows how much quality Martin has and what he can bring to the game. It’s important not to focus only on him like I said earlier because Norway as a team have been good this World Cup and we need to be prepared for the team as a whole and not just him," kata Bukayo Saka, penyerang Inggris.

Saka menyatakan bahwa fokus utama timnya adalah memenangkan pertandingan dengan memahami seluruh kekuatan kolektif lawan.

"He’s been great. He’s been in good form and not just him, you know, his teammates. So, yeah, we’ll focus on them as a collective because they’re in good form and they’ve been good this tournament. But, yeah, we know our strengths and we’re focused on winning the game," tutur Bukayo Saka, penyerang Inggris.

Saka juga membenarkan bahwa sempat ada komunikasi singkat di antara rekan satu klub tersebut sebelum pertandingan penentuan ini dimulai.

"Yeah, briefly, but of course we know we’re both focused on doing the best for our country," ucap Bukayo Saka, penyerang Inggris.

Pertandingan babak perempat final ini terpaksa dilanjutkan menuju babak perpanjangan waktu 2x15 menit guna menentukan tim yang berhak melaju ke semifinal Piala Dunia 2026.