England wants to close a wound that has been open for 60 years and is already in the semifinals

BarcelonaA wound that has been open for 60 years. A wound that England wants to close in New York by winning the World Cup. For now, the team that proudly wears three lions on its crest is already in the semifinals, only the fourth time they have achieved it so far. Two goals from Jude Bellingham have allowed the English to defeat a magnificent Norway in extra time in the quarterfinals in Miami, in a match where at times the English have played with fire (2-1). But the team trained by Thomas Tuchel knows how to compete and suffer. Things in life, a German coach excites the English, who will now face the winner of Argentina-Switzerland.

David Beckham, accompanied by his wife, seemed to preside over the match at Hard Rock Stadium. Beckham lives in Miami and the match was played here, so the former England captain watched nervously, wondering if this generation would be capable of doing what he couldn't experience: reaching a World Cup final. In 2018, England had already reached the semifinals, the first since 1990, but they suffered a shock, surprisingly falling to small Croatia in extra time. Today, extra time has smiled on them, as Bellingham took advantage of a serious error by goalkeeper Nyland. The Real Madrid player is becoming the great leader on the pitch for a team where Kane, for once, did not score. But he worked hard.

England, as always, seemed to be playing at home. English fans go to the ends of the earth, if necessary, pursuing a utopia: to see their team win the World Cup. Fewer and fewer people remember in person that 1966 Cup, when they won the trophy for the first and only time at Wembley, at home, with a bit of controversy. Since then, decades of disappointment. Every four years they sing ""It's coming home", believing that the inventors of football will be crowned. Every four years their hearts are broken, but for now, in this one, they are celebrating big. The people who asked for money to pay for the trip are celebrating, and so was Mick Jagger, present in the stands.

If for England conquering the World Cup is a kind of obligation, since they codified this game and have always had certain imperialist tendencies, for Norway to be in the quarterfinals was already a success. Haaland, in fact, was smiling before entering the field. These days he has been explaining that for his country, having eliminated Brazil and being in the quarterfinals was already a success. But one thing is to celebrate what you have done and a second is to give up winning more. In the first few minutes the English were better, with an Anthony Gordon very active opening up the field on the left wing. Kane was quite isolated by a Scandinavian defense that, at the start, seemed content to draw.

But after the hydration break, Norway took a step forward. They pressed high and, in a play down the wing by Andreas Schjelderup, he conjured up a beautiful goal with a shot from a tight angle that surprised Pickford. And they could have scored a second in an attack where Sorloth didn't want to pass the ball to a completely free Haaland. It could have been 0-2. And in just a few minutes, the game was already 1-1. Moments that decide matches, as this England side under Thomas Tuchel has character. They showed it in Mexico in the round of 16 and they've shown it in the quarter-finals by equalizing before half-time thanks to a play where Gordon connected with Bellingham. And the Real Madrid player combined strength and talent to equalize. The team's number 10 was acting as a leader with a goal protested by Norway, as the ball seemed to have touched one of the cables holding the spydercam from the ceiling. However, FIFA said that the chip in the ball detected no contact. And the goal stood.

England wanted more. In fact, at halftime Tuchel made a double substitution, sending Rice and Madueke to the bench, bringing on Eze and Saka to revolutionize the wings. But the changes did not translate into clear superiority for an England side that would see the referee disallow a goal by Heggem from a corner kick due to a foul by Haaland just before. Norway was dominating and wanted more, so Solbakken brought on Bobb and Nusa, two electric players. England, slow, unrecognizable, was struggling. And Tuchel decided to take the Barça player Gordon off the field, who had gone from good to worse. But Norway missed their chance, hitting the post. And England recovered once extra time arrived.

They did so thanks to a shot where Nyland parried the ball at the feet of Bellingham, who did not miss with his fourth goal in two games. The English also celebrated a penalty on Djed Spence, who brought necessary energy to the team. But it was not a penalty, as was seen after a VAR review. Norway saw time running out. And to top it off, Haaland couldn't go on, tired. And Solbakken took him off the field in the second half of extra time. The match was emotional as both teams were tired, with muscle problems and injuries. England suffered and ultimately prevailed, putting an end to Norway's beautiful World Cup adventure. England's adventure continues.