Norway, Belgium, and Morocco have been among the surprise packages of the World Cup 2026. According to the pre-tournament World Cup 2026 odds, these three nations weren’t supposed to make it this far, but here they are, still alive and kicking in the quarter-finals.
The Vikings are here after winning against Ivory Coast (2-1) and Brazil (2-1), while the Red Devils secured a 3-2 comeback win over Senegal before crushing the United States with a 4-1 scoreline. On the other hand, Morocco survived the Netherlands in the penalty shootout before whacking tournament co-hosts Canada 3-0. Before this, they all qualified for the knockouts by finishing as one of the Top 2 seeds from their respective groups.
While their stars get most of the plaudits for their success, we believe their coaches should also get their flowers for putting them in a position to succeed, and SBOTOP will pay homage to them today.
Stale Solbakken, Norway
Stale Solbakken is back in the World Cup stage for Norway, this time as their head coach, and the 58-year-old Kongsvinger native is in the midst of leading his country to its best finals run in history. Before this year, the Vikings had never made it past the Round of 16.
Norway finished second behind France in Group I. They opened their finals campaign with a 4-1 rout of Iraq before beating Senegal 3-2, and they lost 4-1 to France in the group-stage finale, where Solbakken deployed a rotated squad after securing their place in the knockouts.
They defeated Ivory Coast 2-1 in the Round of 32, as Antonio Nusa and Erling Haaland found the back of the net. In their subsequent 2-1 victory over Brazil, Haaland had a brace before Neymar scored his final international goal for the Samba Boys as consolation.
Solbakken has done a superb job of empowering Haaland, who’s making his World Cup debut this year. With seven goals and numerous World Cup 2026 highlights under his belt, the Manchester City striker is among the frontrunners in the competition’s Golden Boot race, only one goal behind the evergreen Lionel Messi.
Besides Haaland, Martin Odegaard and Orjan Nyland have helped Norway’s cause. Odegaard has the green light to control their tempo from the middle of the park, while Nyland has been one of the most underrated goalkeepers in the competition. According to FIFA records, Nyland has covered a remarkably high number of kilometres, logging at least 5.7 kilometres per match.
Rudi Garcia, Belgium
Rudi Garcia is doing well in his first international management stint, having guided Belgium to the quarter-finals. The Red Devils finished on top of Group G with five points after back-to-back draws against Egypt (1-1) and Iran (0-0) before securing a 5-1 rout of New Zealand in the group-stage finale.
Belgium’s offence has picked up considerably since the New Zealand game, as they’ve scored at least three goals in their past three. In the Round of 32, they were in danger against Senegal after going down by two goals, but Romelu Lukaku and Youri Tielemans had other plans. Lukaku came off the bench and scored their first before Tielemans struck twice to complete the epic comeback.
Against the United States, Garcia drew praise for having the balls to bench Kevin De Bruyne – arguably their most influential player – and Jeremy Doku in favour of empowering Nicolas Raskin and Leandro Trossard, who had one assist each. Charles De Ketelaere registered a brace, while Hans Vanaken and Romelu Lukaku were also on the scoresheet.
The Red Devils will face their biggest test yet when they take on Spain at SoFi Stadium this weekend. Garcia will face some big selection calls that could determine their fate.
Mohamed Ouahbi, Morocco
Mohamed Ouahbi wasn’t supposed to be here, as the 49-year-old was a last-minute replacement for Walid Regragui, appointed only in March. Fast forward to today, and Ouahbi is on the verge of replicating Regragui’s improbable 2022 semi-final run.
The Atlas Lions started well with seven points in Group C, following a 1-1 draw against Brazil and consecutive wins against Scotland (1-0) and Haiti (4-2). During the Round of 32, Morocco came back to beat the Netherlands via penalties before destroying Canada in the Round of 16.
Ismael Saibari is their leading scorer with three goals, and he just confirmed his permanent move to Bayern Munich (PSV Eindhoven). Azzedine Ounahi and Soufiane Rahimi also have two goals each. It also helps that Morocco have arguably the best African player in Achraf Hakimi, while Ayyoub Bouaddi, Brahim Diaz, Noussair Mazraoui, and Yassine Bounou continue to hold their ground.
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