Overview
- Belgium came from 0-2 down to beat Senegal 3-2 after extra time in Seattle, with Romelu Lukaku scoring in the 86th minute and Youri Tielemans equalising in the 89th before converting a VAR-awarded penalty in stoppage of extra time.
- Senegal held a 2-0 lead until late in normal time but conceded when substitute errors included a failed goalkeeper sortie by Mory Diaw that allowed Tielemans’s equaliser.
- A foul by Lamine Camara in extra time was reviewed by VAR and led to the decisive penalty that Tielemans converted at 120+5 minutes.
- Hours after the match, midfielder Pape Gueye said he will step away from the national team while the current coaching staff remain in place, and Rudi Garcia’s post-match remark about ‘these teams’ provoked criticism over its perceived meaning.
- The result advances Belgium to face the United States in the next round and highlights two wider issues in the match: the decisive role of late VAR interventions and the impact of Senegal missing first-choice keeper Édouard Mendy because of injury.