Balogun reprieve ends in anti-climax as Belgium dump USA out
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- Belgium demolished co-hosts USA 4-1 at Lumen Field in the World Cup Round of 16, with Charles De Ketelaere scoring twice (9th and 33rd minutes) and Hans Vanaken (57th) and Romelu Lukaku (90+3) sealing the result against a defense that committed howlers on each goal.
- Malik Tillman scored USA's lone goal via a deflected free kick in the 31st minute — their only shot on target of the opening period — but the team offered none of their usual Pochettino-era intensity against a Belgium side that had flattered to deceive earlier in the tournament.
- Folarin Balogun, whose FIFA red card was controversially rescinded in a process the article links to Donald Trump's involvement, managed just 19 touches and was largely peripheral; Pochettino said he was personally disappointed by the politicization but insisted it was 'not an excuse' for the defeat.
- Goalkeeper Matt Freese was caught in possession outside his box by De Ketelaere for Vanaken's goal, while Chris Richards was dispossessed by Lukaku for the fourth — defensive calamities Pochettino's side had avoided in earlier rounds.
- Belgium advances to a quarter-final date with Spain on Friday in Los Angeles, having been galvanized by the Balogun furore according to Sky Sports' analysis, with coach Rudi Garcia saying the controversy 'is not his [Balogun's] fault.'
- Balogun himself said post-match: 'I didn't have any involvement in the process, and that's not something that has anything to do with me personally,' pushing back on the narrative that his reinstatement had unsettled the squad.
Why it matters: USA's first knockout win since 2002 — over Bosnia-Herzegovina in the last 32 — was followed by their heaviest World Cup knockout loss, ending any run to the quarters on home soil. Pochettino's assertion that the Balogun decision was 'not an excuse' rings hollow against a performance his own analysis called 'chalk-and-cheese' to anything seen earlier, with the Trump-linked process now destined to be revisited as the political cost of the sporting one. Belgium, previously unconvincing, will fancy their chances against Spain on Friday.
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