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Norway coach Stale Solbakken revealed that he apologised to the Italian team after Norway’s celebrations went overboard following their 4-1 win over Italy at the San Siro. A brace from Erling Haaland helped Norway secure their first World Cup finals qualification since 1998, marking a historic moment for the nation. With the defeat, Italy must now navigate the play offs phase in order to qualify for the 2026 World Cup.

Norway's historic win

Norway entered the decisive World Cup qualifier knowing they simply had to avoid a nine-goal defeat to secure automatic qualification, but they still aimed to finish the campaign strongly. Italy struck first, with Pio Esposito scoring in the ninth minute, giving the Azzurri a perfect start and raising faint hopes of an improbable comeback in the standings. Italy defended well in the first half, keeping Norway’s attack quiet, but the visitors grew into the game after the break. 

Antonio Nusa equalised in the 63rd minute, shifting momentum firmly in Norway’s favour. Haaland then delivered a devastating two goal burst within two minutes, putting the match beyond Italy. Jorge Strand Larsen added a fourth to complete the rout. The match also saw a heated moment when Gianluca Mancini provoked Haaland, prompting Gianluigi Donnarumma to intervene. 

Norway’s emphatic win sealed their place in the World Cup finals for the first time since 1998. Norway coach Solbakken congratulated his young players on their historic achievement and believes they have ushered in a new era, saying: “There was a lot of pressure on this team, and these young players have managed to put that burden behind them. Now it's a new era for us.”

AdvertisementGettySolbakken's celebrations and apologies

In the post-match press conference, Solbakken spoke about Norway’s historic qualification for the 2026 World Cup and credited the strong culture and belief within the squad. He said: “There is a great culture in this team, everyone believed in this project and in this way of playing.”

Norway’s 4-1 win meant Italy finished second in their World Cup qualification group and will now have to go through the World play offs to secure a place at the 2026 World Cup.

Solbakken could not contain his excitement and celebrated with the squad in the dressing room, but later admitted that the celebrations may have gone too far. He apologised to the Italian team and coach when he said “I sang and danced with the lads in the dressing room.”

“Perhaps we went a bit overboard with the celebrations in the end, and I apologised for that. They understood.”

Haaland, who scored a brace, was applauded by the San Siro crowd. Solbakken felt that the stadium, known for hosting some of football’s greatest forwards, recognised a future great. 

"Haaland applauded at San Siro? That's how it is for the greats. Here, they've seen [Zlatan] Ibrahimovic, Sheva [Andriy Shevchenko], [Javier] Zanetti, [Ruud] Gullit, [Jurgen] Klinsmann," he said.

Italy's qualification scenario

Italy coach Gennaro Gattuso apologised to supporters after the heavy 4-1 defeat to Norway, admitting that his team “got everything wrong” in a match he described as being divided into two very different halves. He felt Italy played with control and structure in the first half, only to collapse after the break due to fear, fragility and poor game management. The loss means Italy must once again go through the pressure of the play offs, marking the third straight qualifying cycle in which they have been forced down this route. It is another difficult moment for a nation that has not appeared at a World Cup since 2014, a painful absence for a country with such rich footballing history. On Thursday, Italy will learn which opponent they will face in the crucial March play offs, a draw that will shape their hopes of returning to football’s biggest stage in 2026.

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Getty Images SportGattuso's preparations

Norway can now look forward to playing in the 2026 World Cup, and Solbakken will hope to have Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard fully fit in time for the tournament. Meanwhile, Gattuso will analyse Italy’s defeat in detail and focus on addressing the team’s weaknesses. The Italy coach is expected to work on tactical adjustments and overall organisation as he aims to reduce Italy’s shortcomings before the crucial play offs.

Sixth-wicket stand of 111 leads response to Derbyshire’s 377

ECB Reporters Network supported by Rothesay30-Jul-2025 Northamptonshire 265 for 5 (Broad 64*, Bartlett 60*) trail Derbyshire 377 (Andersson 105, Procter 71*, Chahal 6-118) by 112 runsGeorge Bartlett and Justin Broad shared an unbroken sixth-wicket partnership of 111 to lead the Northamptonshire recovery in response to Derbyshire’s total of 377 at Wantage Road.Bartlett equalled his season’s best of 60 not out, made in the opening round of the Rothesay County Championship, while Broad struck an unbeaten 64 as the pair batted through the evening session, having joined forces at 154 for five.Northamptonshire captain Luke Procter anchored his side’s innings with a gritty 71 at the top of the order before becoming one of a trio of departures in quick succession prior to tea.Earlier, Indian leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal picked up the final two Derbyshire wickets to register figures of six for 118, his best in the County Championship.Derbyshire resumed on 348 for eight and Ben Aitchison wasted no time in securing their third batting bonus point, clubbing Liam Guthrie’s first delivery of the morning to the cover fence.Aitchison looked on course to reach a first-class half-century for only the second time in his career, but he departed five short of that landmark, chopping Chahal back onto leg stump.The spinner soon wrapped up Derbyshire’s innings as Blair Tickner – having blazed a couple of boundaries off George Scrimshaw – took an ambitious swing and was caught at slip off a thick edge.With ball in hand, Tickner then sent down a fiery opening spell, generating plenty of pace and bounce and earning his reward by removing Ricardo Vasconcelos with a delivery that swung in to hit the left-hander on the pads.Procter and Lewis McManus – who was awarded his county cap prior to the start of play – saw their side through to lunch, not without the odd scare as debutant Joe Hawkins’ first ball found the edge of the skipper’s bat but fell just short of slip.The visitors struck in the first over after the interval, when McManus misjudged the line from Zak Chappell and was caught behind, but James Sales started perkily as he dispatched Hawkins for two cover boundaries.Meanwhile, Procter withstood a barrage of short-pitched bowling from Tickner, emerging unscathed after he ducked into a bouncer and continued to accumulate, guiding Aitchison to the rope at third man to bring up his half-century.Northamptonshire’s third-wicket partnership yielded 74 before Luis Reece achieved the breakthrough, tempting Sales to drive outside off stump and Harry Came clasped the catch at cover.Reece prised out Procter, foxing the batter with a slower ball that trapped him in front and Derbyshire also removed the in-form Saif Zaib on the stroke of tea, caught behind to provide Hawkins with his first senior wicket.Bartlett made a scratchy start but began to open up in the wake of Procter’s exit, lifting Hawkins over the top for four and responding to another pounding by Tickner with a classy straight drive back over the bowler’s head.He was soon overtaken by Broad, whose tendency towards the pull shot almost proved his downfall when he miscued Tickner to leg slip, only for the ball to drop just in front of the stretching Caleb Jewell.However, it was Bartlett who won the race to 50, pummelling Reece for six and four in quick succession and Broad soon followed suit, capitalising on the left-armer’s full toss to find the boundary.

They dropped three catches in the first 15 overs of India’s second innings

Matt Roller01-Aug-20251:44

Trescothick rues dropped catches

England were left “frustrated” and “disappointed” after dropping three catches in the first 15 overs of India’s second innings at The Oval, as the fifth Test threatened to slip away from their grasp.India finished the second day with a lead of 52 and eight second-innings wickets in hand on a lively pitch, with the young opener Yashasvi Jaiswal riding his luck to reach a 44-ball half-century. Jaiswal was dropped twice, on 20 by Harry Brook at second slip and on 40 at long leg by Liam Dawson, while Zak Crawley shelled a chance at third slip off Sai Sudharsan.Both drops in the slips were genuine chances but hit firmly, but Dawson – on as a substitute fielder for the injured Chris Woakes – had one hit straight to him. He did not have to move as Jaiswal hooked Josh Tongue to him, but he lost the ball in either the sunlight or the floodlights – his sunglasses were on his cap – and was lucky to avoid a serious injury.Related

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“You’re always frustrated when you miss opportunities,” Marcus Trescothick, England’s assistant coach, said. “Of course, we pride ourselves on being very good in those sorts of areas, but it just didn’t happen. We all know how important they are and we all know how tough catches can be – especially in the slips – so [we are] disappointed, but it is what it is.”Crawley’s drop was England’s 15th of the series, per ESPNcricinfo’s logs, compared to India’s 20. Their catching cost them in Manchester last week, with Shubman Gill put down by Dawson and Ollie Pope on his way to his century, and Joe Root putting Ravindra Jadeja down off the first ball of his match-saving unbeaten hundred.England looked weary in the field on Friday evening after batting for just 51.2 overs in their first innings but Trescothick refused to blame their drops on physical and mental fatigue. “I don’t think that’ll be anything to do with it,” he said. “It just happens over the course of some days and some games. It’s just the game, as we see it.”Trescothick believes that the Test is “evenly poised” after two days, and expects the pitch will continue to be “lively”. “There’s more life in it,” he said of the surface. “There’s more pace, more seam movement, and we’re at the extreme version of what we see in those types of pitches, but it’s definitely what we like.”We want pace on the ball, we want the ball to bounce and we want the ball to carry through so that when we’re batting, we can be aggressive, we can attack, and we can put pressure back on the bowlers; and when we’re bowling, if we get opportunities and we catch the edge, hopefully it will carry through… We’re very happy with how [the pitch] has performed so far.”

Former Schalke coach Jens Keller, who managed Leroy Sane and handed him his professional debut, has criticised Germany national team boss Julian Nagelsmann for his comments about the winger. On Monday, Nagelsmann issued another warning to Sane regarding his World Cup prospects following his move to Galatasaray, with Keller of the belief that such comments should be reserved for private conversations.

• Nagelsmann's public warning to Sane

  One of the surprises in the Germany squad for the upcoming World Cup qualifiers against Luxembourg and Slovakia was the return of Sane. Having signed for reigning Super Lig champions Galatasaray after leaving Bayern Munich as a free agent over the summer, the call-up marked his first inclusion in the national team squad since the Nations League Finals in June. However, Nagelsmann publicly warned the 29-year-old that he won't get many opportunities if he fails to grab them.

  Speaking at a press conference on Monday, Nagelsmann said: "If we had six or seven players to choose from in that position, then it would be significantly more difficult for him. He knows that there aren't an unlimited number of opportunities to prove himself at the national team level. I told him that openly."

  However, the 38-year-old manager recognised and acknowledged an improvement in Sane's performances over the past few months. "Profile-wise, he has everything we need in that position. That's why he has this opportunity now," he said.

  "His scoring rate and performances have improved significantly compared to the beginning, both in the Super Lig and in the Champions League. But he still has steps to take to improve even further – both here and at the club."

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  Former Bundesliga coach defends Sane after Nagelsmann's comments

  Jens Keller, former Stuttgart, Schalke and Union Berlin head coach, was not too pleased with Nagelsmann's comments at the press conference this week. The former defender also believes Sane "brings something special" to the German national team.

  "I suspect Julian Nagelsmann wanted to provoke him, but I would have handled it differently," Keller told . "It's not my style to communicate publicly and increase the pressure like that. Leroy may be a laid-back guy, but he's also very sensitive."

  Keller, who guided Sane to his professional debut in 2014, says he’s unsure whether public criticism benefits the player’s performance. He explains that Sane “used to need a talking-to now and then," but not in public. "You can tell him your opinion in private, and he accepts it.”

  The 54-year-old also defended Sane from the criticism by adding that "if he doesn't perform well, it's almost always viewed quite critically. But he also played some great games for Bayern last season." For Keller, there is "hardly anyone in Germany who has such a good left foot, such speed, who goes deep and demands the ball."

  He also referred to Nagelsmann's comments about Sane back in August, where he pointed out that the ex-Manchester City and Schalke star is now plying a trade in a league that has lower standards. "Ultimately, he plays for a top Turkish club and in the Champions League. I don't know what's so bad about that," Keller pointed out. "That's also my conviction because he still brings something special. As a person, he's an incredibly good guy, I like him very much. Leroy would always be there for me."

  Former Bayern director Matthias Sammer agrees that Nagelsmann's method may not be ideal, saying: "My experience is that individualists need love, need so much love that it causes a clash. That's just the way it is.
  " 

• Ex-Bayern star becoming impactful for Galatasaray

  After a slow start with the Turkish heavyweights, Sane is showing signs of nearing his best. The German international has often been scrutinised for his unimpressive displays and lack of impact with Gala, with former player Alparslan Erdem even warning Sane to "get his head straight first" if he doesn't want to be unsuccessful like ex-Chelsea star Hakim Ziyech.

  However, he seems to have found his rhythm, scoring three goals and delivering as many assists in 15 games across Super Lig and the Champions League. "I had to settle in first. I had an adjustment period, so things didn't quite go as planned on the pitch at the beginning," Sane admitted to recently. "I had to get to know my teammates, and they had to get to know me, how to interact on the pitch, how to play together. That took a little while. But now, in the last few games, I'm very happy with my performances and how I've played. I want to carry this momentum forward and keep going."

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  Sane determined to play at the 2026 World Cup

  Sane previously discussed his relationship with Nagelsmann, assuring that there was no bad blood between them. "Julian Nagelsmann and I have a very good relationship; we get along really well and had good exchanges and discussions during the last training courses," he said. "I’m grateful to him for that. Of course, I hope that when things are going well for me again, I’ll be invited back. I want to repay that trust with my performance – he’s always supported me, and I’m grateful for that."

  Sane also expressed his determination to fight for his spot at next year's World Cup, saying: "The World Cup is a big goal for me – the biggest event in football. I’ll do everything I can to perform at my best and show that Julian Nagelsmann has to take me. I certainly hope we have a great tournament together."