Nusa stunner gives Norway halftime lead over Ivory Coast

Antonio Nusa’s 39th-minute strike gave Norway a 1-0 halftime lead over Côte d’Ivoire at Dallas Stadium in Arlington, Texas, and put the under-pressure European side within one half of a place in the last eight conversation. Martin Ødegaard provided the assist, and Nusa finished with a curled shot into the top corner that beat Yahia Fofana.

The goal was more than a flash of individual skill. It came from the kind of attacking exchange that has made Norway look increasingly dangerous at this World Cup, with Ødegaard supplying the final pass and Nusa attacking defenders directly before releasing a precise finish. Against Nicolas Pépé, Nusa created just enough space to strike cleanly, a reminder that Norway can now threaten from both creativity and one-on-one pace rather than relying on a single route forward.

For Norway, the moment carried historical weight. This is only their fourth World Cup appearance, after 1938, 1994 and 1998, and their best finish remains the round of 16 in 1998. They had not reached the knockout stage since then, so every attacking surge in Arlington carried the sense of a team trying to rewrite a long absence from this part of the tournament.

Côte d’Ivoire arrived with its own landmark already secured. By beating Curaçao 2-0 in the group stage, the Ivorians reached the World Cup knockout round for the first time, a breakthrough that had already given the tournament one of its sharpest early storylines. Norway’s lead changed the rhythm of this tie, forcing Côte d’Ivoire to push higher and opening more space for the Norwegian attackers to work into.

Nusa, born on 17 April 2005 and now 21, has been one of Norway’s main attacking threats in the 2026 World Cup and was named in the country’s 26-man squad. His finish against Côte d’Ivoire looked like the kind of strike that can alter a tournament bracket as much as a single match, especially with the winners set to meet Brazil in New York on 5 July for a quarter-final place.