Jude Bellingham needed just one word to respond to Thomas Tuchel’s anger at England’s display against Norway: “Whatever.” It was a remarkable response from the Real Madrid star after he scored twice to send England into the World Cup semi-finals with a 2-1 extra-time victory over Norway at the Miami Stadium.
Tuchel had let rip at his players in a heated interview with ITV, saying: “We made life very difficult for ourselves today. The result is fantastic, we’re in the last four, it’s amazing, but no, I’m not happy with the performance. Sloppy, a lot of technical mistakes, not fast enough, not repetitive enough. We were lucky today.” When asked by interviewer Gabriel Clarke if it was a mentality issue, the German snapped: “This is pure mentality, how can you ask about mentality? There is no mentality problem, this is pure, you can bottle it up and sell it.”
“Jude Bellingham scored twice to beat Norway, then said 'whatever' after Thomas Tuchel slammed England's performance.”
Bellingham, however, saw things differently. “Character, perseverance, even when things weren’t working,” he said of England’s progress. “We found the way to win the game again. Whether it’s in 90, 120, we’ll give everything we’ve got. So proud of this team once again.” Told of Tuchel’s displeasure, Bellingham replied: “Yeah, well, whatever. Whatever. It’s difficult out there. It’s a tough shift. All the players have put in a very tough shift.”
On the pitch, England were in danger of being blown off course when Norway led through Andreas Schjelderup’s cross-cum-shot in the first half. Bellingham equalised brilliantly, then scored a poacher’s finish in extra time after Norway goalkeeper Ørjan Håskjold Nyland spilled a shot from substitute Morgan Rogers. The win moved Bellingham on to six goals in the tournament, putting him in contention for the Golden Boot. Norway had chances to level after Bellingham’s second – Antonio Nusa saw a shot blocked by Marc Guéhi, and Oscar Bobb lifted high – but England nullified Erling Haaland, who was withdrawn after the first period of extra time.
England now face Argentina in the semi-final on Wednesday 15 July, kicking off at 19:00 BST live on BBC One and BBC iPlayer. The rift between Tuchel and his star player threatens to overshadow preparations for the biggest match of the tournament.