BRIGHTON (VG) (England – Norway 8-0) It started with shock and disbelief over a cheap penalty kick to England, but things were going to get much, much worse for Norway.

– It hurts to play too. It hurts to stand out there feeling helpless. “Above all, I suffer with the players,” Sweden national team coach Martin Sjögren told the NRK match.

– It’s brutal, it hurts, team captain Maren Mjelde told the same channel.

After 41 minutes, Ellen White was leading 6-0 for the hosts. Already at half-time, the figure represents the largest margin of victory in the context of a European Championship ever.

It also belongs to England – and signs from a 6-0 win against Scotland in 2017.

In the second half, the score became 7-0 and 8-0, which was also the final result. Norway have never lost by more than seven goals.

– I haven’t seen the like. They looked completely paralyzed, not knowing what to do. Sad to see Norwegian football, Norwegian national team legend and former England manager Hege Riise told VG during the break.

– It’s embarrassing, sad, unbelievable. It’s shocking how bad they are, said an unrelated John Arne Riise on a break broadcast to the BBC.

It all started with Ellen White walking very easily onto the grass and being punished after a duel with Norwegian stopper Maria Thorisdottir.

– Cheap penalties, wrote football expert Morten Langli on Twitter.

– The referee is in the wrong place. He is not here. Sure, there was some contact, but that shouldn’t be punished. This was «soft punishment». That would be a wrong punishment. “It’s really too cheap,” said former high court judge Jonas Eriksson at Sweden’s SVT.

However, in the end, the judge’s decision only became brackets.

The pain intensified for Norway as Lauren Hemp doubled the lead a few minutes later. Bethany Mead scored in front of goal, and her wing-mate easily made it 2-0.

The cold shower was lowered a few more degrees when Maria Thorisdottir messed up the ball. That snapped Ellen White, and alone with Guro Pettersen, he definitely put in 3-0.

And in six minutes it went from bad to terrible. Beth Mead improved to 4-0 after 34 minutes. And suddenly also ran at 5-0 and 6-0 before the break. In the second half, England improved to 7-0.

– Some of the worst I’ve ever seen, says SVT expert commentator Markus Johannesson of Norway’s collapse.

– This is one of the most embarrassing I’ve ever seen, wrote football expert Lars Tjærnås on Twitter.

Despite the extraordinary defeat, Norway can still qualify for the quarterfinals. If they beat Austria on Friday, they would advance to the quarter-finals.

– Now it’s about showing that we are a strong group. The European Championship is not over yet. That’s a huge consolation. We are continuing this with our own hands, Sjögren told NRK.

– We have to take care of ourselves. It’s a brutal learning, says Mjelde.