Ten man Norway left it late to grab a point in the opening game of the UEFA U21 Championship breaking the hearts of hosts Israel in the process.
Israel got off to a nervy start and were sloppy in possession which presented Norway with the ball in good areas but they were unable to punish the mistakes.
The home sides nerves were settled though when they took the lead in controversial fashion. The referee gave a dubious corner to Israel and the Norwegians were unable to clear it, With the ball bouncing about the box, Omar Elabdellaoui took a wild swing but caught Omri Ben Harush and the referee rightfully pointed to the spot. Israel's captain, Nir Biton stepped up to take it and sent the Norwegian goalkeeper the wrong way.
The lead was short lived however and just nine minutes later, Norway were level. Israel failed to deal with a cross into the box and Marcus Pedersen out muscled the defender before turning and hitting a low shot into the corner.
Norway built on that goal and should really have took the lead as they were causing all sorts of problems for the Israel back line. Anders Konradsen hit the bar and Jo Inge Berget hit the post as Norway were taking advantage of a static Israeli defence with some smart attacking runs.
However, Norway failed to take advantage of their dominance and the game swung in Israel's favour just before half time when Vegar Eggen Hedenstad saw red when he brought down Mohammed Kalibat who was through with the goalkeeper to beat. I'm not sure the referee got this right though as, although the striker was clear of Hedenstad, the angle he was running at would have took him into the path of Fredrik Semb Berge who may have been able to make a challenge. The referee felt otherwise though and made a decision that was to have a huge impact on the result.
Even with ten men Norway still looked the better side and the goal scorer, Pedersen could and should have added to his tally. Twice he found himself one on one with the goalkeeper and twice he failed to find the back of the net. Konradsen was again denied by the woodwork when his deflected shot hit the post and Norway were perhaps thinking the God's were conspiring against them.
Israel began to get into the match as Norway tired and should have took the lead when Moanes Dabour turned in the box but blasted into the side netting with the goal at his mercy.
They weren't to be denied minutes later though when the ball fell to Alon Turgeman fifteen yards from goal and he blasted a volley past Orjan Nyland to send the home fans into raptures.
With time running out it looked like Israel were going to hang on for a famous victory but Norway had other ideas and forced a stoppage time equaliser. Havard Nielsen chested the ball into the path of Harmeet Singh who connected beautifully with his left foot from outside the box to earn Norway a well deserved point.
On the balance of play a draw was probably a fair result but I think the key point of this game was the red card and if both teams had finished with eleven men I think we would be talking about a Norway victory.
It's hard to see Israel getting much joy from either of their last two games but Norway showed enough to make me think when the four senior internationals return to the squad they might just have enough to get out of this group.
Man of the Match : Marcus Pedersen (Norway) - The Odense striker scored one goal and should have had several more but poor finishing let him down. I could criticise him for the missed chances but instead I will give him credit for the skills and movement that created the opportunities. I will be looking forward to see him in the next two games and expect that his finishing will be better if he gets the same volume of chances as he did in this game.
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