Former Borussia Dortmund star Erling Haaland was on target again as Norway beat Ivory Coast 2-1 in their 2026 FIFA World Cup Round of 32 encounter.
The striker tapped home into an empty net with only four minutes of normal time remaining to send the Nordic side into the next round where a daunting clash with Brazil awaits.
Having fielded a weakened side in their 4-1 loss to France last week with progression to knockout stages already secured, Norway were back to full strength here.
Borussia Dortmund star Julian Ryerson, though, remained on the bench for the second time in a row since the player picked up an injury during their Senegal win on matchday two.
The match was evenly contested early on with neither side truly creating anything of note until Antonio Nusa broke the deadlock for the Norwegians after 39 minutes.
Darting inside the area on the left, the RB Leipzig forward showed some nimble footwork to go clear of his marker before arrowing a beautiful shot into the top bin for 1-0.
Amad Diallo equalized for the National Elephants after 74 minutes with a lovely individual effort that saw him dart inside the area showing excellent ball control before slamming a low-drive into the bottom corner.
But Haaland won it late for Norway with a tap-in and send the Ivorians packing. A lovely through ball was played in which Patrick Berg raced to latch on to before squaring it for Haaland.
The Manchester City ace made a poor finish but the ball bundled over into an empty net as Norway were back in front.
Seeing off the remainder of the clash, Stale Solbakken's side sealed their passage into the Round of 16 where another tough draw against tournament favorites Brazil await them.
As for Ryerson, he should play some part in the upcoming clash on Sunday after spending back-to-back games on the bench without playing a single minutes.
Initial reports sparked a cause for concern for both Norway and Borussia Dortmund, who had already lost Nico Schlotterbeck to a long-term injury a few days earlier.
But all such fears were allayed soon after as Ryerson returned for their clash against France, being among the substitutes as Solbakken made a raft of changes to his XI.
Perhaps the right-back, who made a staggering 18 assists for Dortmund in all competitions last season, is being saved for the big game.
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