After days of anticipation and debate surrounding the USA’s Round of 16 matchup against Belgium – and a frantic past 24 hours as FIFA controversially ruled that American striker Folarin Balogun could play despite receiving a red card in USA’s Round of 32 game – the Red Devils proved to be the dominant force on the pitch.
From the opening kickoff, Belgium had the Americans on the back foot, and only a fabulous save from USA goalkeeper Matt Freese kept Belgium from going ahead in the first minute of the game. The respite proved to be short-lived as Belgium continued its onslaught and eventually found the net in the 9th minute off the foot of Charles De Ketelaere after the US defense failed to clear the ball out of the box.
Belgium continued to look dangerous and the US just looked dazed as the first half continued. After the first hydration break, the Americans seemed to settle into the game and the partisan crowd at Lumen Field in Seattle began to will them back into the contest.
Lightning struck for the US in the 31st minute after Balogun earned a free kick for the Stars and Stripes just outside the 18-yard box. Tillman stepped up to the moment and, just as he did in the last game against Bosnia & Herzegovina, he buried the ball in the back of the net to tie the game at 1-1.
The jubilation in Seattle lasted less than 2 minutes as Belgium brought the thunder in the form of another goal, this time off the head of De Ketelaere.
The US continued to threaten for the rest of the first half, and after the intermission, the Americans came out much more lively than they were to start the game. USA manager Mauricio Pochettino’s lone halftime move was to bring in dynamic attacking player Gio Reyna, who has shown the skill to drive opposing defenses mad.
The run of play seemed to be favoring the USA until disaster struck in the 57th minute. Freese came out of the box to play a ball off his chest. He side-stepped a charging De Ketelaere, but then misplayed the ball horribly, allowing the Belgian forward to poke the ball away to his teammate Hans Vanaken, who had no trouble putting it into the empty goal.
Compounding the USA’s woes, play-making midfielder Christian Pulisic was subbed out of the game minutes later due to injury on a play where the American team and its fans felt as though he’d been fouled.
As the second half hydration break arrived, the USA remained unable to crack the Belgian defense despite enjoying plenty of possession. The European giants – ranked No. 9 in the world – refused to flinch in the final third, and all of that USA possession didn’t equate to scoring chances.
And Belgium had weapons waiting in reserve. Belgian boss Rudi Garcia, perhaps looking to make a statement after FIFA’s handling of the Balogun red card incident, unleashed a pair of super subs in the form of Manchester City’s attacking midfielder Jérémy Doku and Napoli striker Romelu Lukaku.
As the clock became the US’ fiercest enemy, Balogun, who has spent the past few days under the microscope, had a moment to shine as he brought down a long pass on the run and found himself in a 1 v. 1 with Belgian goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois. Balogun struck the ball well with his left foot, but Courtois was able to get enough of the ball to push it away and stymie another US scoring attempt.
The Red Devils put an exclamation point on a decisive win in second half stoppage time as Lukaku powered the ball past a diving Freese to the far post for Belgium’s fourth goal of the night, cementing a 4-1 win and a date with European powerhouse Spain in the quarterfinals on Friday at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California.
With the USA’s exit, each of the tournament co-hosts – Canada, Mexico and the US – have exited the World Cup in the Round of 16.
