Chris Sutton Makes His World Cup Quarter-Final Predictions As England Face Norway

After impressing with his last-16 picks, BBC Sport football expert Chris Sutton has turned his attention to the World Cup quarter-finals.

Sutton got seven of eight last-16 ties correct, with only Switzerland’s penalty shootout win over Colombia catching him out.

AI fared worse in the previous round, incorrectly predicting Brazil would beat Norway and that the USA would survive their tie with Belgium.

BBC users matched Sutton and AI with six correct picks from eight, but still lead the overall standings with 68 correct results from 96 matches, equating to 71 per cent accuracy.

Both Sutton and AI have each called 61 results correctly, sitting at 64 per cent, with the tournament now approaching its closing stages.

The quarter-final line-up includes France against Morocco, Spain versus Belgium, Norway taking on England, and Argentina meeting Switzerland.

Sutton is backing France to beat Morocco, having tipped the French to win the entire tournament before a ball was kicked.

He has highlighted concerns over Morocco’s inconsistency, noting they were “really poor in the first half against Canada” and appeared “lethargic” during that last-16 fixture.

The absence of key forward Ismael Saibari through injury is another factor Sutton believes could significantly undermine Morocco’s ability to cause problems for France going forward.

Sutton also pointed to France’s composure against Paraguay as evidence of their quality, adding that Desire Doue’s impact from the bench demonstrated the depth available to the squad.

Both Sutton and AI predict France to win 2-1, with AI responding to Sutton’s jibe about predictable selections by stating: “The aim isn’t to be surprising, Chris. The aim is to be right.”

For Spain against Belgium, Sutton acknowledges Spain were disappointing in attack against Portugal but expects an improvement, backing them to win 3-0.

Amadou Onana’s injury is a blow for Belgium’s midfield, and Sutton does not believe they will become the first side to score against Spain in this tournament.

The England versus Norway tie is the fixture generating the most attention, with Sutton describing England’s 3-2 win over Mexico as “probably the game of the tournament so far.”

He praised the resilience England showed with ten men, singling out John Stones, Dan Burn and Djed Spence for their defensive contributions during that victory.

Sutton has been impressed by Norway, however, insisting Erling Haaland’s movement for his first goal against Brazil was “just unbelievable” and predicting the striker will influence this match heavily.

He added that Martin Odegaard and Haaland represent genuine star quality, and would not be surprised if Haaland scored more than once against England.

Despite the threat Norway pose, Sutton does not see their defence being able to contain Harry Kane and Jude Bellingham, predicting England to win 3-2 in what should be an open contest.

AI backs England to win by a narrower 2-1 margin, agreeing on the outcome but differing slightly on the scoreline.

In the final quarter-final, Sutton is tipping Argentina to beat Switzerland 2-1, admitting he is going “with his heart” in hoping for an Argentina-England semi-final.

He noted that South American sides have been a “massive disappointment” at this tournament, though Lionel Messi and Argentina continue to find ways through despite making hard work of their knockout ties so far.

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