Norwich City midfielder Alex Tettey scored for Norway for the second game running on Tuesday night – but it was not enough to earn his country an automatic place in the next summer's European Championship Final.
Tettey followed up his effort in Saturday's 2-0 win over Malta with a 23rd minute opener against Group H winners Italy in Rome.
Had they held on to the lead Norway would have qualified for France 2016 – but the Italians hit back with second half goals from Alessandro Florenzi and Southampton's Graziano Pelle to win the game 2-1.
With Croatia winning 1-0 in Malta to clinch second spot Tettey and his Norwegian colleagues must now gear themselves for next month's two-legged play-offs, with eight countires battling it out for the four remaining places in the finals.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here