Belgium produced one of the great World Cup comebacks on Wednesday, coming from two goals down to beat Senegal 3-2 after extra time in a pulsating Round of 32 clash at Seattle Stadium, booking their place in the last 16.
For long stretches, the match belonged to Senegal. Habib Diarra opened the scoring in the 24th minute, pouncing on a rebound after Ismaïla Sarr’s header had bounced back off the post. Six minutes into the second half, Sarr doubled the lead himself, latching onto a defence-splitting pass, controlling it on his chest, and thumping the ball into the top corner. With Belgium’s attack misfiring and Kevin De Bruyne substituted early, Rudi Garcia’s Red Devils looked set for a shock exit.
The turnaround began in the 86th minute, when substitute Romelu Lukaku, introduced at halftime, poked home a near-post finish to halve the deficit. Three minutes later, Belgium found an equaliser when a defensive mix-up allowed captain Youri Tielemans to head home from close range, levelling the score at 2-2 and forcing extra time.
Neither side created much in the additional 30 minutes until deep into the second period of extra time, when Tielemans went down under a challenge from Lamine Camara inside the box. After a lengthy video review, the referee awarded a penalty, sparking furious protests from the Senegalese players. Tielemans stepped up himself and calmly slotted the spot kick into the top corner in the 125th minute, the latest match-winning goal in World Cup history.
The result ends a remarkable run for Senegal, who had scored ten goals across the tournament and looked destined for the knockout rounds after their dominant first-half showing. For Belgium, it was a chaotic but crucial step forward, setting up a Round of 16 meeting with the tournament co-host USA.
