Norway‘s coach Stale Solbakken confessed to a restless night after his side’s exhilarating 2-1 World Cup last-16 triumph over Brazil on Sunday.
The victory also brought an end to an alleged spat with opposing manager Carlo Ancelotti, thanks to a gracious gift from the Brazilian boss.
The controversy had brewed following Norway’s last-32 win against the Ivory Coast, when a clip emerged of Solbakken stating, “Carlo Ancelotti, we’re coming for you!” This comment reportedly provoked many Brazilian fans.
However, the 58-year-old Norwegian coach clarified that his remarks were “taken out of context,” and it seems Ancelotti held no hard feelings, ultimately resolving the tension with his thoughtful gesture.
“I can say that he (Ancelotti) showed his enormous greatness after the match. He sent a representative in with a Brazilian shirt with my name on the back and a greeting. So it was strong stuff,” Solbakken told reporters on Monday.
Striker Erling Haaland scored twice to send the Norwegians into the quarter-finals for the first time where they face England in Miami on Saturday, and Solbakken allowed his players and coaches a night off to rejoice while he struggled to sleep.
“I let the support staff celebrate for themselves. I was too tired, so I went to bed and watched the game again, and then I scrolled a little here and there and answered a few texts, and slept very little. But it was a good morning,” Solbakken said.
The coach said he had not exactly given his players a free hand to celebrate their historic win, but that he expected they would be able to enjoy themselves anyway.
“They decide these things themselves, it’s freedom with responsibility. It always is, these boys manage that just fine,” he added.
Haaland said in quotes reported by fifa.com: “If I get a chance or two, it usually ends up as a goal. I don’t know how I do it, but that’s how I do it, so it’s all about staying focused. I tell myself the chance will come, and then I usually know right away if I don’t score.
“I’m starting to realise now, I think, that it’s a gift from God that it goes in perfectly, perfectly right up against the post and stuff. So it’s crazy.
“We just kept pushing forward, but I hope that all the young people watching this interview, I hope that when you get a little older, you’ll see playing for Norway as the proudest thing you’ll ever do in your entire life – it’s absolutely insane.”
Ancelotti insisted he would not be stepping down after Brazil’s early exit, saying in quotes reported by the BBC: “I don’t think this is the end. I think this is the start of a new cycle.
“I think we have done a good job, but this is football and this is sport. You just have to deal with it, deal with the sadness and the taste of defeat. I am very much used to this and we will handle this. We will use it as fuel going forward.”
