Why was Ada Hegerberg awarded a penalty vs Italy despite being offside? | OneFootball

Ada Hegerberg awarded a penalty after being pulled down in the box vs Italy

Ada Hegerberg was rather controversially awarded a penalty for Norway against Italy on Wednesday despite being in an offside position.

Norway were 1-0 down against Italy in their Euro 2025 quarter-final when Ada Hegerberg was awarded a penalty.

The striker was pulled down by her opponent in the box as a cross flew towards the striker and despite being in an offside position, Hegerberg was awarded a penalty.

Many fans were confused as to why VAR didn’t overturn a penalty given by the referee however when taking a closer look at the rules of the game it was the correct decision.

As Hegerberg wasn’t interfering with play when she was pulled down in the box, the foul stands and with it the penalty as well.

To the relief of Italy fans, the Norway striker missed her second penalty at the tournament with Italy maintaining a one goal advantage.

WATCH: Ada Hegerberg misses penalty vs Italy

Ada Hegerberg redeems penalty miss

Although she missed the golden opportunity to equalise, Hegerberg was able to make a mends for her error just over five minutes later.

The 30-year-old broke through on a long ball over the top of the defence and with Italy’s goalkeeper hesitating to come out of net, Hegerberg was able to poke home her second goal of the tournament.

Despite Norway seeming most likely to find a winner after they equalised, the game looked to be heading to extra time right until the last minute of the game.

As four minutes of added time were announced Italy pounced through veteran striker Cristiana Girelli.

The 35-year-old headed home her second goal of the game and third of the tournament to seal Italy’s place in the quarter-finals.

Who will Italy face in the quarter-final?

After snatching a late winner against Norway, Italy can now sit back and watch England vs Sweden on Thursday night with the winner lining up against Italy in the Euro 2025 semi-final.

Italy remain a long-shot for the Euros despite securing a spot in the semi-finals with the UK’s best betting sites offering a price of 18/1 for them to win the tournament.