The U.S. men’s national team is out of the World Cup.
Belgium took down the Stars and Stripes 4-1 in the Round of 16 in Seattle on Monday, as the U.S. chose the worst time to have its worst game.
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The Red Devils will meet Spain next in the quarterfinals, with all co-hosts now out following the exits of Canada and Mexico earlier in the round.
The game was expected to be played at a fast pace with both teams not the type to sit back. The Folarin Balogun red-card controversy only added to any potential fuel.
Belgium made sure to bring up the red card on social media in the aftermath, posting “Overturn this” with an emoji.
Balogun got the starting nod in an unchanged lineup from Mauricio Pochettino. Belgium, on the other hand, did not start Kevin De Bruyne, Jeremy Doku and Romelu Lukaku. But head coach Rudi Garcia knew what he was doing with the chemistry between his starters.
It was Belgium that used the aforementioned fuel first to get on the scoresheet inside 10 minutes. Some poor U.S. defending led a pass to be deflected to the back post from the left flank, where Belgian striker Charles De Ketelaere reacted first to tap home.
Even U.S. head coach Pochettino had a confused look on the sidelines with the lack of intensity and communication from the defense.
But the U.S. would get the next goal — and from a fitting scenario. Malik Tillman, just like he did vs. Bosnia and Herzegovina, scored a free kick at a crucial moment.
The 31st-minute goal was aided by a deflection that put off star goalie Thibaut Courtois, but it was a moment the U.S. desperately needed to calm down the nerves. Tillman had put the U.S. up 2-0 en route to eliminating Bosnia in the Round of 32.
But the equalizer didn’t last long.
Just about 61 seconds later, De Ketelaere made it a brace. Leandro Trossard moved down the left flank before putting in a cross with his weaker left foot. De Ketelaere rose up over Tim Ream to head home in the 33rd minute.
The U.S. went into the break struggling to get Christian Pulisic and Balogun involved. Gio Reyna came on for Sergino Dest at halftime as Pochettino sought some more attacking presence in midfield.
However, the first decisive moment of the second half proved too costly for the U.S.
In the 57th minute, U.S. goalie Matt Freese came out to clear the ball and had enough support around him for a pass. But it seemed like Freese froze in the moment, as he lost the ball with no one protecting the net.
The ball came out to first-half substitute Hans Vanaken, who calmly put it home from long range with only Ream having a chance to block it.
It immediately went from bad to even worse, as Pulisic could not continue with what appeared to be a knock. Just minutes before, Pulisic attempted to shoot the ball just outside the box but ended up kicking Youri Tielemans instead. Sebastian Berhalter replaced him.
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Pochettino attempted to make changes with fresh legs, but the quality difference between his bench and Belgium’s was too stark. De Bruyne did not come off the bench, though Lukaku and Doku did.
The final goal eventually went to Lukaku, who capitalized off another U.S. defensive mistake in second-half stoppage time to make it 4-1. Alex Freeman and Chris Richards took too long to clear the ball in their own defensive third, as the veteran Lukaku punished the mistake.
Belgium were deserved winners in the end, posting 2.15 expected goals across 15 total shots, per data-tracking platform FotMob. It’s the type of goalscoring performance the Red Devils needed as Spain present a whole new challenge.
La Furia Roja have yet to concede in this tournament as Unai Simon keeps extending his World Cup-minutes record. The U.S. would’ve faced a similar uphill battle had it qualified instead.
The U.S. ended the game with just 0.67 expected goals with seven shots and only 12 touches in the Belgian box.
Balogun struggled to impose himself against center-backs Brandon Mechele and Nathan Ngoy, logging only 19 touches and three shots — two of which were off target. He finished the tournament with three goals amid the red-card controversy. The “Football Gods” may have had a say.
Pulisic assembled a poor overall tournament, too. He didn’t score a goal across four games and had one assist before exiting early with an injury. He didn’t get on the ball enough and lost too many key duels to keep his nation on the front foot. He’s left injured from three of the seven World Cup games he’s started.
The AC Milan forward had 36 touches, but completed just 2 of 6 dribbles and didn’t record a single shot. He lost 6 of 8 ground duels.
The goalie question mark will also continue from here. Freese made his mark to replace 2022 World Cup starter Matt Turner. But the 27-year-old NYCFC goalie didn’t do enough to make an impact, and his mistake will be his legacy from the tournament.
Ream’s replacement will also need to be someone of true quality to go alongside Richards. Mark McKenzie and Miles Robinson are not at the required levels to come in for the 38-year-old defender.
The 2022 World Cup saw the U.S. fall to the Netherlands 3-1 in the Round of 16 in a game that went a similar way. The U.S. came up against a superior European side just a tier below the best and lacked the confidence and individual attacking quality to make a difference.
The last quarterfinals berth for the USMNT came in 2002, when it fell to Germany 1-0. The nation has never won the men’s World Cup.
All eyes will now be on Pochettino’s status with the national team moving forward, as he will decide whether to stay on or potentially return to club football.
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