Unsettled! Norway's coach revisits the "flying cat" controversy: insists it was touched, FIFA lacks courage to admit it.

Though it has been one day since Norway's World Cup exit, on July 13 Beijing time, the "bitter" Norway head coach Solbakken addressed the "flying cat" controversy again in an interview. He strongly condemned the application of VAR in this competition and said that if FIFA had openly acknowledged the wrong call, it would have appeared more graceful—concealing it like this reflects a lack of magnanimity.

In the World Cup quarterfinal where Norway lost 1-2 to England, Norwegian goalkeeper Nyland kicked a ball that reportedly struck a wire supporting a "flying cat" camera above the pitch, causing the ball's trajectory to change. It then dropped to an England player, who launched an attack and successfully equalized.

On this, Solbakken held a grudge and said: "There's no debate about it—it definitely hit the wire! If FIFA had generously admitted this, it would have shown more character. But there's nothing we can do about it. I fully understand that the referee didn't see it during the intense moment and didn't react. If the referee didn't catch it and no chip signal was sent back, VAR couldn't intervene. "

Solbakken was also very dissatisfied with how VAR was operated in this tournament. "I think this is a tacit admission that the world's best referees should have had greater authority, but in reality they don't."

Not only about that decision, Solbakken also expressed disbelief over Norway's second-half goal being disallowed due to Haaland's push in the box.

Solbakken argued that if this incident had occurred in the group stage, the goal might have stood: "In the group stage, matches are more controlled by the head referee, who has more weight. In the knockout stage, it seems everyone is afraid of making mistakes, leading to controversial situations. I think this is counterproductive—it only sparks more debate, because the final decision isn't made by the world's best referee."

Although Norway regretfully missed out on a top-four finish, reaching the World Cup quarterfinals is already the best result in the team's history. Solbakken and his players can leave with their heads held high and will be welcomed back home as national heroes.