Oslo :Alexander Sorloth and Erling Haaland both scored twice as Norway claimed a 4-1 home win over Estonia on Thursday which put them on the brink of qualifying for the World Cup for the first time since 1998.

Norway have all but secured a place at next year's tournament in North America as they hold a six-point lead over second-placed Italy, who play Moldova later on Thursday, in Group I.

Italy need to beat both Moldova and Norway in their remaining two qualifiers and overturn a 19-goal deficit to leapfrog the Norwegians and snatch the automatic qualifying spot from Group I.

Norway endured a tense first half as a disciplined Estonia shut down every channel, forcing the hosts into slow, predictable play and even drawing boos at the interval.

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