Odegaard earns Norway draw against Morocco in World Cup warm-up

HARRISON, New Jersey: Martin Odegaard struck in the second half as Norway recovered to hold Morocco to a 1-1 draw in a World Cup warm-up match on Sunday.

The Arsenal captain finished firmly from Oscar Bobb's low delivery in the 75th minute to bring Norway level after Morocco had gone in front early through Brahim Diaz. The result came in a meeting between two teams already qualified for the 2026 World Cup.

Morocco, who became the first African side to reach a World Cup semi-final four years ago before losing to France, are aiming for another strong campaign in 2026. They begin their Group C schedule against Brazil next Saturday, with Scotland and Haiti also in their first-round group.

The North African side made the brighter start and took the lead after eight minutes. Abde Ezzalzouli surged down the left before sending in a cross that Diaz collected and turned into the net with a low finish.

Norway, with Manchester City's Erling Haaland leading the attack, offered little in the opening half. Their best first-half opportunity initially came from Alexander Sorloth, whose glancing header went wide, before Antonio Nusa forced a save from goalkeeper Yassine Bounou just before the interval.

Morocco continued to fashion the better openings. Ezzalzouli went close in the 38th minute when he volleyed over from a Diaz pass, and Diaz nearly scored again in the 57th minute, only for Norway goalkeeper Orjan Nyland to push his effort away. Neil Al-Aynaoui then headed over from the rebound.

Norway eventually found their equaliser with 15 minutes remaining when Bobb's cross reached Odegaard, who drove home to secure a share of the result.

Norway open their World Cup campaign against Iraq on June 16 in Group I before facing Senegal and France.