USA 1-4 Belgium: Charles De Ketelaere double crushes host nation’s World Cup dream
Charles De Ketelaere scores twice as clinical Belgium dismantle co-hosts USA 4-1 at Seattle Stadium to cruise into the World Cup quarter-finals.
Co-hosts United States saw their historic World Cup journey brought to a brutal, screeching halt as a ruthless Belgium side exposed the defensive frailties of Mauricio Pochettino’s men with a clinical 4-1 victory at Seattle Stadium. An opportunistic brace from Charles De Ketelaere alongside a disastrous second-half error sealed the fate of the Americans, making them the final host nation to exit the tournament.
The tone for a night of punishing reality was set inside the opening minute when US goalkeeper Matt Freese had to stretch into a phenomenal diving save to block Timothy Castagne’s arrowing shot. It proved only a temporary reprieve. In the ninth minute, Leandro Trossard’s probing cross into the penalty area triggered chaos in the home defence, allowing Nicolas Raskin to lash a low delivery across the six-yard box for De Ketelaere to comfortably tap home.
Despite the early setback, the 66,925 passionate fans inside Seattle Stadium were briefly brought to their feet by a moment of individual magic just after the half-hour mark. Striker Folarin Balogun, whose pre-match buildup was dominated by a controversial FIFA appeal overruling his suspension, won a crucial free-kick 10 yards outside the penalty box. Malik Tillman stepped up and curled an exquisite effort that deflected slightly off a Belgian defender to completely wrong-foot Thibaut Courtois. In doing so, Tillman became only the second player since 1966 to score direct free-kicks in back-to-back World Cup games.
However, the American joy lasted a mere 116 seconds. Straight from the restart, Belgium exposed the USMNT’s lack of concentration. Trossard again turned provider from the left flank, floating an inviting cross over the veteran Tim Ream for De Ketelaere to glance a brilliant header past a helpless Freese.
Any hopes of another American comeback evaporated shortly before the hour mark in calamitous fashion. Chasing a loose ball, Freese raced wildly out of his penalty box but completely missed his clearance. De Ketelaere effortlessly stole possession and fed Hans Vanaken, who measured a precise, long-range finish into the empty net before Ream could recover to block.
Pochettino threw on Gio Reyna and Ricardo Pepi to spark a late onslaught, but Courtois stood firm to deny Balogun twice in quick succession. As the US committed numbers forward, substitute Romelu Lukaku put a glistening gloss on the scoreline deep into stoppage time, embarking on an explosive power-run before firing low into the corner. A commanding Belgium side marches on to meet Spain in Los Angeles, leaving a devastated but historic United States squad to bow out on home soil.
