The rescinding of American striker Folarin Balogun’s red card dominated the narrative going into Monday’s clash against Belgium, but coach Rudi Garcia had his plans in place.
He had plotted his on-field response in advance. He decided to keep the talismanic Kevin de Bruyne out of the starting XI, given his sparse returns from the first four matches.
The 6-ft-4 inches versatile Charles De Ketelaere replaced De Bruyne upfront as an
attacking midfielder-cum-winger-cumcentre forward. He had played the role to perfection in the pre-World Cup friendlies and was up for the challenge in the Round of 16 clash as well.
Unleashing the 25-year-old De Ketelaere was a move the US didn’t see coming. The result was two quick goals in the first half from De Ketelaere.
The Superior Player of the Match paved the way for the 2018 bronze medallists with a pair of poacher’s finishes prior to the interval. The first was a tap-in to break the deadlock inside the opening 10 minutes, while the second, a towering header shortly
after the half-hour mark, crucially served to restore Belgium’s lead before the dust had even settled following the USA’s equaliser.
“It’s a fantastic feeling to have produced a performance like this in the knockout stages; it’s really special.
I’m thrilled that we’re through to the next round,” De Ketelaere said.
“There are so many positives to take away from this game both for the squad as a whole and for me personally, and we’ll be brimming with confidence going into the Spain match.”