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Charles De Ketelaere scored twice and provided an assist as Belgium produced a dominant display to eliminate co-hosts USA with a 4-1 victory in Seattle.
The Atalanta forward opened the scoring in the ninth minute and restored Belgium’s lead just two minutes after Malik Tillman’s deflected free-kick had drawn the USA level. Hans Vanaken added a third after a costly goalkeeping error, and Romelu Lukaku completed the rout in stoppage time.
The victory sends Belgium through to the quarter-finals for the third consecutive World Cup, where they will face Spain at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California on Friday. For the United States, the defeat means all three co-hosts — USA, Canada and Mexico — have exited at the Round of 16 stage .
Belgium seized the initiative from the first whistle, with Timothy Castagne forcing an early save from USA goalkeeper Matt Freese. The breakthrough came in the ninth minute. Nicolas Raskin collected a loose ball after Leandro Trossard’s cross caused chaos in the American area and squared for De Ketelaere, who tapped into an empty net from close range.
Belgium suffered a setback when Amadou Onana was forced off with a knee injury just before the half-hour mark, replaced by Hans Vanaken. But it was the USA who struck next. In the 31st minute, Malik Tillman’s free-kick from just outside the box deflected off the wall and wrong-footed goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois, who dived the opposite direction, to bring the hosts level at 1-1.
The equaliser sparked the partisan crowd into life, but the celebration was short-lived. Less than two minutes later, Trossard reached the byline on the left wing and delivered a precise cross for De Ketelaere, who rose above Tim Ream to power a header past Freese from close range. It was the forward’s seventh international goal and gave Belgium a 2-1 half-time lead .
The USA pushed forward in search of an equaliser after the break, with Mauricio Pochettino introducing Giovanni Reyna to bolster the attack. But it was Belgium who struck next — and in devastating fashion.
In the 57th minute, Freese rushed out of his area to clear a long ball but hesitated, allowing De Ketelaere to poke possession away. The ball fell to Vanaken, who calmly chipped into the empty net from 35 metres to make it 3-1.
Belgium controlled the remainder of the match comfortably, with their defence limiting the USA to few clear chances. In the 93rd minute, Chris Richards botched an attempted clearance, and substitute Romelu Lukaku pounced, lashing a low shot into the far corner to complete the 4-1 victory.
