Saarma nets his first goal, but Norway’s 12-minute blitz sinks Estonia in Oslo

Estonia concluded their FIFA World Cup qualification campaign in Oslo, delivering a spirited first-half performance before Norway’s attacking firepower proved too much to handle after the break. Despite a strong defensive display in the opening 45 minutes, four Norwegian goals in a ruthless 12-minute stretch early in the second half sealed Estonia’s fate. Robi Saarma’s first-ever international goal provided a brief moment of joy, setting the final score at 1-4.

Head coach Jürgen Henn made four changes to the starting lineup compared to the previous match against Moldova, bringing in Robert Rocco Shein, Kevon Palumets, Märten Kuusk, and Rasmus Peetson. In the earlier meeting between these teams in Tallinn, only Erling Haaland’s 62nd-minute strike separated the sides, giving Norway a narrow win.

Both teams started the game with vastly differing aspirations, with an undefeated Norway side hoping to take a huge step closer to a first World Cup since 1998 whilst Estonia were attempting to end another punishing campaign that has yielded just 4 points on a high.

The historical weight of the occasion was made clear to the Estonian defence almost immediately after kick-off, with Norway heading straight onto the attack and forcing two corners in the opening 2 minutes. A raucous partisan crowd propelled their team forward and were almost rewarded with an early goal when Antonio Nusa displayed excellent skill to force himself past the Estonian defence into the penalty area but could only shoot just wide.

Estonia struggled to gain a foothold into the game in the opening 10 minutes and it looked like it might be a long night for goalkeeper Karl Hein, who asserted himself well in these early stages.

Nevertheless, Estonia did eventually manage to settle themselves and, for a brief period early in the first half,  appeared to be turning the significance of the occasion for their hosts to their advantage. For as long as the scoreline remained goalless, the hint of nervousness and tension amongst the Norwegian team as well as their supporters was palpable. Norway may have dominated with the ball but Estonia were solid and well organised, and Estonian throw ins and goal kicks were routinely booed and whistled by a crowd anxious to see their team get on the scoresheet early on.

Norway continued to press, and were growing visibly more frustrated the longer they failed to find that all important first goal. Estonian hearts were in mouths in the 19 minute following a goal line clearance by captain Karol Mets following a brave header by David Møller Wolfe that saw the Norwegian collide with Hein.

Estonia did manage to remind their hosts that they were no pushovers, with Rauno Sappinen rattling Norwegian nerves around the half hour mark with an excellent break that left him one on one with Ørjan Nyland, but he could only hoot straight into the goalkeeper’s grateful arms.

This proved to be the highlight of Estonia’s half, with Norway continuing to assert their dominance – Alexander Sørloth finding the side netting after 30 minutes and  Haaland going close with a looping header just before the break.

Despite hanging on with just a hint of desperation, Estonia managed to get to halftime with the scores still level. They had defended well overall, and been tough to break down. The statistics agreed – Norway may have enjoyed 61% of possession and 13 attempts on goal to Estonia’s 2, but just 2 of these were on target. An unlikely point to take back to Tallinn appeared within the realms of possibility.

These dreams proved to be short lived. Norway picked up where they left off after the break, immediately laying siege to Hein’s goal and quickly discovered the ruthlessness they had been lacking in the first half. The deadlock was finally broken by Sørloth in the 50^th minute, picking out a well placed cross by Sander Berge. From here the wheels truly fell off for Estonia, who undid all their good defensive work from the first half with a costly lapse in concentration and discipline. It took just two minutes  for Sørloth to add to his tally, latching on with a diving header to a Julian Ryerson cross.

Estonia’s resolve lasted just 4 more minutes, with Norwegian captain and talisman Erling Haaland joining the party with a looping header that gave Ryerson a second assist. Haaland grabbed a second goal 6 minutes later, smashing into the roof of the net from the back post. Within 12 whirlwind minutes Norway had gone from potentially heading to a damaging draw to steamrollering their bewildered opponents.

Estonia’s rock like defence had conversely transformed into an open door and by this stage even the Estonian commentators were referencing the sizes of Norway’s previous victories in the group, which included an 11-1 thrashing of Moldova, whilst captain Mets was seen lambasting his defence in animated exchanges. From this point it felt like all bets were off when it came to what the final scoresheet might look like.

Yet in the face of such adversity, Estonia did not fold and dug deep to regain their composure. Out of nowhere they regrouped and stunned Norway with an outstanding goal of their own in the 64th minute. Kevor Palumets took full advantage of some poor Norwegian defending following a theatrical Haaland penalty appeal to thread a precision pass through to Robi Saarma, who displayed excellent composure under pressure to slot a cool finish into the bottom right corner.

From here, Estonia rediscovered their defensive capabilities once more, and handled further Norwegian attacks with relative ease. Given that two Norwegians were on hattricks, with Haaland alone having scored an almost unbelieve 14 goals in seven games, this final defensive flourish deserves credit.

With the result no longer in doubt, the game eventually petered out in the closing stages, although Estonian youngster Marten-Chris Paalberg almost added some final late drama with a strike that grazed the underside of the crossbar. Ultimately, however, it was Norway that secured the 7^th consecutive win that all but secures their place at next year’s World Cup in North America. For Estonia, this marked the end of a campaign that, whilst only yielding 4 points, has generated plenty of positive moments to build on for the future. Tonight marked another occasion where, but for losing their heads during a vital period, Estonia were defensively solid and posed some attacking threat of their own. The team’s 2025 ends with a friendly away to Cyprus on 18^th November, where they will seek to end a frustrating year on a high.

Norway vs Estonia – 4:1 (0:0)
Goals: Sørloth 50′ 52′, Haaland 56′ 62′ | Saarma 65′