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Making its first World Cup appearance since 1998, Norway is looking to advance to the round of 16 when it takes on Côte d'Ivoire on Tuesday.
A closely contested match is set to unfold at the home of the Dallas Cowboys, with Emerse Faé's squad having defeated Ecuador and pushed Germany hard during the group stage.
Côte d'Ivoire is savoring its first major tournament experience in over a decade and has yet to make it past the group stage. Not many tipped Les Elephants as a sleeper pick on this side of the Atlantic, but Faé's squad has been a compelling watch throughout. A 2–0 win over newcomers Curaçao on Matchday 3 secured the team's progression from Group E as runners-up.
Norway boss Ståle Solbakken maintained that heavy rotation against France was the right call after his side had already booked its spot in the last 32 by defeating Iraq and Senegal. They were hammered 4–1 by Les Bleus, with Ousmane Dembélé netting a first-half hat trick, though Solbakken appeared unfazed by the anticipated loss.
He's taking a measured approach, with Norway hoping to replicate its achievement from '98, when it advanced to the round of 16 for the first time since 1938.
Côte d'Ivoire vs. Norway Score Prediction
Haaland Leads Norway to Victory
While France left nothing to chance on Matchday 3, Norway was comfortable settling for second place in the 'Group of Death' to set up what appears to be a challenging fixture on paper.
They've already navigated past African opposition once this summer, and Côte d'Ivoire will pose comparable challenges to those Senegal presented on Tuesday. Norway's capacity to create high-quality opportunities has been central to its run, with an xG per shot of 0.18 ranking as the tournament's best, per Opta.
Les Elephants' energy and balance shouldn't be overlooked, with their group stage showings, including a composed victory over Curaçao in their last outing, only fueling belief that they could emerge as a genuine dark-horse of the 2026 World Cup.