SEATTLE — Belgium dumped the United States out of their own World Cup yesterday, as Charles De Ketelaere’s brace secured a 4-1 win that was eclipsed by the bitter row over Folarin Balogun’s ban.
Victory means the Belgians face Spain in the quarter-finals, while the US follow co-hosts Canada and Mexico out of the tournament with elimination in the round of 16 after a thoroughly flat performance.
All attention pre-game had been on Balogun’s place in the US starting lineup, after US President Donald Trump asked Fifa to review the striker’s one-game suspension for a red card, and the governing body controversially obliged.
But Belgium’s XI had a few surprises of its own, with Kevin De Bruyne and Jeremy Doku among the heavyweights benched. And coach Rudi Garcia’s gambit proved inspired, with De Ketelaere grabbing an early goal to puncture the feelgood vibes in Seattle.
Malik Tillman grabbed one back from a free kick, but De Ketelaere swiftly restored Belgium’s lead. A catastrophic piece of goalkeeping by Matt Freese and a late Romelu Lukaku goal left the Americans dead and buried.
FIFA’s move to suspend Balogun’s ban after he was sent off in the previous round against Bosnia and Herzegovina has been slammed by football fans, pundits and players around the world, but there were no such misgivings among the Seattle crowd.
A colossal roar greeted the stadium announcement of Balogun’s name in the starting XI, vastly dwarfing the cheers even for US talisman Christian Pulisic.
The “USA” thunderclap then echoed around the stadium, utterly drowning out a small corner of chanting Belgium fans in the opening minutes.
But the American party was swiftly silenced. The majority of 67,000 fans fell silent in the ninth minute as De Ketelaere scored, easily tapping home from close range after Nicolas Raskin’s cross evaded some lax defending.
It was the first time the Americans had conceded the opener all World Cup. With the atmosphere deflated, no immediate fightback was visible on the pitch either. The midfield was outgunned and the defense looked nervous.
On the half-hour mark, Balogun drew a foul on the edge of the area and whipped the crowd back to life. He waved his arms frantically as Malik Tillman — fresh from scoring a free kick against Bosnia — lined up the ball.
Tillman’s shot deflected off the Belgian wall and span into the net, and the stadium shook.