Norway spoil Scotland party in thrilling Hampden Park draw
Aron Dønnum rose to the challenge of spoiling the Hampden Park party early on, after showing brilliant composure inside the box to drill a left-footed strike beyond Zander Clark in only the third minute.
Julian Ryerson drilled in a cross from the right towards Jørgen Strand Larsen, who managed to lay the ball off in an unconventional fashion for Dønnum to do the rest.
The Toulouse forward went from hero to villain less than 10 minutes later though, penalised for handball in his attempt to block Callum McGregor's shot.
Captain John McGinn was coolness personified from the spot and levelled the scores, sending Egil Selvik the wrong way in the process. But the joy was short-lived, as Ryerson delivered another enticing cross from the right and Strand Larsen diverted his close-range finish past Clark to reestablish the visitors’ lead.
However, this topsy-turvy contest took another twist when Scott McTominay’s corner took a nick off Leo Østigård and in to restore parity once again.
The shackles were off in this dead-rubber affair, as Patrick Berg came mightily close to scoring a third for Ståle Solbakken's side with a free-kick that drifted just wide of the post.
Berg then set up Dønnum in the box to potentially get his second and Norway’s third before HT, but Nathan Patterson was on hand to make an excellent goal-saving block.
It proved to be a telling contribution, as Steve Clarke’s men took the lead for the first time in the match just shy of the hour mark.
Stuart Armstrong showed sheer grit and determination to manoeuvre away from a tight spot near the corner flag, play a neat one-two with McGinn, and fire a clinical strike past Selvik.
It looked like Clarke’s men had secured all three points, but they failed to deal with another Ryerson cross, with Elyounoussi profiting on this occasion to nod home unmarked at the far post.
This was not an ideal ending to the campaign for the Tartan Army, who missed out on completing a perfect home record in qualifying. However, knowing their place is secured in the draw for next year’s finals on December 2 is more than adequate consolation.
Flashscore Man of the Match: John McGinn (Scotland)
