From a free kick at the edge of the box, Ioan-Calin Revenco hit the ball straight at goal, but sent it wide. And we have the first change of the match, for the departure of Leo Ostigard, who felt an injury right after the foul, leaving the field for the entrance of Torbjor Heggem.
Thelo Asgaard received the pass up front, already in the area, and managed to shoot, but was blocked by the defense. And soon after, Caimacov, with a long-range shot, hit hard, with a deflection, sending the ball out for a corner, hit in the area for the defense to clear.
Ryerson received the pass and tried a powerful shot, but was blocked by the defense, with the ball going to Haaland, on the rebound, who shot hard from outside the area into the right corner, but with Celeadnic palming it to the ground, managing to make the save!
And now he didn’t miss! Schjelderup received the pass and found Haaland in the box, who hit it hard, low into the left corner, to increase the score at the beginning of the match, extending the lead for Norway, who now leads 2-0!
E agora ele não perdeu! Schjelderup recebeu o passe e achou Haaland na área, que bateu forte, no canto esquerdo, rasteiro, para ampliar o placar nesse início de partida, ampliando o placar para a Noruega, que agora vence por 2 a 0!
Vadim Rata, from outside the area, tried his luck and was blocked by the defense, Moldova’s first attempt of the match. And soon after, Nichita Motpan managed another powerful shot, from outside the area, sending the ball over the goal.
The game had barely started and Norway was already winning 1-0! Thelo Aasgaard found the pass in the box for Ryerson, the right-back, who burst into the box to shoot into the top right corner, with no chance of defense, opening the score for Norway!
The players appear on the pitch and we already have the ball rolling for the first stage of the match between Moldova and Norway, in the first round of the World Cup Qualifiers, with all the moves and emotions here on VAVEL!
Playing at home to Moldova, Norway have managed two wins and one draw in three games in history. In the Qualifiers, there has only been one game, which ended in a draw. The match in question took place in 2005, and ended in a 0-0 draw.
There have been five games between the two teams in history, with Norway winning four and drawing once. In the World Cup Qualifiers, there have been only two games, with one Norwegian victory and one draw.
This first round of the qualifying round will be concluded later today. At the same time as this match, Montenegro will play Gibraltar. And at 3:45 p.m., Israel will host Estonia, the Czech Republic will face the Faroe Islands and Wales will face Kazakhstan.
Norway also release their bench for today’s game and will have the following names to use: Matias Dyngeland, Egil Selvi, Stian Gregersen, Marcus Pedersen, Torbjorn Heggem, Andreas Hanche-Olsen, Patrick Berg, Aron Donnum, Felix Horn Myhre, Lasse Berg Johnsen, Jens Petter Hauge and Erik Botheim.
Norway are also ready for the clash later today and will take to the field in their 4-4-2 formation, with the following starters: Nyland, Ryerson, Ajer, Ostigard and Wolfe; Schjelderup, Aasgaard, Berge and Odegaard; Haaland and Sorloth.
Moldova also announces its bench for today’s clash and goes with: Cristian Avram, Andrii Kozhukhar, Veaceslav Posmac, Andre Motoc, Daniel Dumbravanu, Sergiu Platica, Dan Puscas, Stefan Bodisteanu, Victor Stina, Teodor Lungu, Alexandru Boiciuc and Maxim Cojocaru.
Moldova are ready for the match later today and, in a 3-4-3 formation, will face the following: Celeadnic, Craciun, Baboglo and Mudrac; Revenco, Motpan, Rata and Reabciuk; Caimacov, Nicolaescu and Postolachi.
And let’s go to the 2026 FIFA World Cup Qualifiers here at VAVEL! The ball will soon roll for the clash between Moldova and Norway, in the first round of the group stage of the competition, which you can follow with all the action and excitement here!
Do not miss a detail of the match with the live updates and commentaries of VAVEL. Follow along with us all the details, commentaries, analysis and lineups for this Moldova vs Norway 2026 World Cup Qualifiers match.
Norway will also have no absences for today’s match, in addition to having the return of Odegaard after being out in the Nations League matches, taking to the field with: Selvik, Pedersen, Ajer, Ostigard and Ryerson; Berg, Berge and Odegaard; Hauge, Haaland and Sorloth.
For today’s match, Moldova will have no absences, using its full strength, taking to the field with: Celeadnic, Revenco, Craciun, Baboglo, Mudrac and Platica; Caimacov, Rata and Motpan; Postolachi and Nicolaescu.
In the Nations League, the other competition in which the teams compete, Norway topped Group 3 of League B with 13 points, two ahead of Austria, five ahead of Slovenia and 12 ahead of Kazakhstan. Moldova finished in Group 2 of League D with nine points, two ahead of Malta and eight ahead of Andorra.
The World Cup qualifiers in Europe are interesting in that some groups have only three teams, such as group F, which has Armenia, Hungary and Ireland, or even group A, with Luxembourg, Northern Ireland and Slovakia, in addition to two groups with five teams, such as group J with Belgium, Kazakhstan, Liechtenstein, North Macedonia and Wales. There are 12 groups in total, with five groups with three teams, four groups with four teams and three groups with five teams. Moldova and Norway appear in group I, along with Estonia and Israel.
Moldova comes into today’s game with two wins and one loss in their last games. On October 10, they won 2-0 at home against Andorra, with goals from Ionita and Cojocaru. On the 13th, they lost 1-0 away to Malta, with a goal from Teddy Teuma. And on November 16, they won 1-0 away to Andorra, with a goal from Postolachi.
Moldova vs Norway live match this Saturday (22), at ZImbru Stadium, at 1 pm ET, for the World Cup Qualifiers. The clash is valid for the first round of the group stage of the competition, with live stream here at VAVEL.