Norway not overawed by World Cup as England awaits
Norway has shed its FIFA World Cup jitters and now believes deep down it can beat England in the quarter-finals, coach Stale Solbakken said, as his team prepares for the biggest game in the nation's history.
Norway is gearing up for its first FIFA World Cup quarter-final appearance and Solbakken urged his players not to be overawed by the occasion when they face Thomas Tuchel's England side on Sunday (AEST).
"The most important thing for me is that we are ourselves with the ball and that we dare to play the game and not the whole environment, and that we concentrate on the pitch," Solbakken said.
"I would like to see a Norway team that plays to their strengths and that we are ourselves."
Norway's tournament got off to a shaky start against Iraq, with Solbakken admitting his players seemed overwhelmed by the occasion in its group opener before finding its rhythm in a 4-1 victory.
"You saw a very nervous team in the first 20 minutes against Iraq where we didn't manage to put two passes together," he said.
"That has to do something with the occasion, that it was 26 years ago (since Norway's last major tournament) and no one had played in the World Cup before."
The coach believes his players have found their feet after beating strong opponents like Brazil in the Round of 16, giving them the confidence to take on England's formidable attacking threat.
"Obviously, when you meet a team like England, who have great players on the wings, [Jude] Bellingham and [Harry] Kane, they can score from many positions," Solbakken said.
"They have a great duo in the middle of the park. We need to compete there, we need to defend properly.
"The players deep down feel that they can beat England. But obviously, we have to be at our very, very best. If we are not, England will go through."
With temperatures expected to soar to a heat index of 44 Celsius and authorities in Miami issuing a heat advisory, Solbakken said Norway took no chances with its preparation.
"We have trained very lightly. We haven't done much hard work," Solbakken said.
"We have obviously had tactical sessions, but in a lower tempo and we've not trained for long periods. So it's all about being fresh tomorrow."
The coach also praised his players' mental state heading into the biggest match of its their careers, saying they have maintained their composure despite the mounting pressure.
"They have been really good at keeping their calm. They like to be together and they needed one more day after the Brazil game to really come back into the right mood for the next game," he said.
"But we had five days, so that was no problem. We have had three good preparation days now, so we should be there."
When asked what would be the biggest reason for Norway's success if it does knock England out, the coach smiled and said: "I will answer that if we beat them."
