Wave Staff Report
SEATTLE — The U.S. Men’s Soccer Team had their World Cup hopes shattered July 6, falling to Belgium, 4-1 in a round of 16 match.
After getting much of the country behind them with three wins in their first four games, the U.S. was overwhelmed by a Belgium squad that outplayed the U.S. for most of the night.
Charles De Ketelaere scored twice for Belgium, capitalizing on a defensive mistake by the U.S. in the ninth minute and then outjumping veteran center back Tim Ream in the 33rd minute for a header two minutes after Malik Tillman scored the only U.S. goal to even the score at 1-1.
The most crucial score for Belgium came in the 57th minute after a major blunder by U.S. goalkeeper Matt Freeze allowed
Hans Vanaken to score into an empty net from outside the penalty box.
Romelu Lukaku added the final goal in the first minute of stoppage time for the final score as the U.S. failed to make much headway against a veteran Belgium team that defeated the U.S. 5-2 in a World Cup tune up game in March.
The Belgium squad was the first major test of the World Cup for the U.S., who cruised through group play with a 2-1 record and defeated Bosnia and Herzegovina, 2-0, in the round of 32. Leading scorer Folarin Balogun received a red card in the second half against Bosnia and Herzegovina and was expected to be suspended for the game against Belgium. But international soccer’s ruling body, FIFA, announced July 5 that the suspension had been lifted and Balogun played.
Like most of his teammates, he picked the wrong night to have his worst game of the tournament, missing his lone scoring opportunity in the 82nd minute.
“We’ve had so much faith and belief in each other, and felt a nation coming together and getting that belief too,” fullback Antonee Robinson said after the loss. “And, you know, it feels like we let ourselves down, let them down. It’s beyond disappointing.”
“Today wasn’t a good day,” midfielder Tyler Adams added. “It stings. This was a moment to have the opportunity to advance and really try and do something special. “We fell short.”
It was the fourth time in the last five World Cups that the U.S. was eliminated in the round of 16. The only time the U.S. advanced farther was in 2002 when the U.S. defeated Mexico in the round of 16, only to lose to Germany in the quarterfinals.
That team included Landon Donovan, Cobi Jones, Gregg Berhalter, Claudio Reyna and Clint Mathis and was generally considered the best international team the U.S. had ever produced.
This year’s team was expected to surpass that team but ultimately failed on a night where more than 30 million people in the U.S. were watching on television. It was the largest U.S. soccer audience in history. Unfortunately, it was the only soccer history made that night.
