The two teams involved in this match have taken markedly different paths to the Round of 16. Belgium, everyone's favorite dark horse, won three games as expected but could not hit top form in any of their group matches.
Against Algeria, they seemed nervous; the game changed thanks to the experience of Marouane Fellaini and the wonderful skills of Dries Mertens. They did not really deserve to beat Russia in the second match but managed to do so by a single late goal. Finally, they played an entire half without a man against South Korea and won but were not impressive when they had 11 men on the pitch.
The USA began with a largely surprising win over Ghana in their group. A Clint Dempsey strike in the first minute set them on their way. They defended for most of the match, conceded an equalizer and went ahead again thanks to a powerful header from John Brooks. Against Portugal, they were the better side for most of the match and conceded in the last second, thus relinquishing a 2-1 lead. Against Germany, they defended tightly for most of the match, conceding only one goal in the process.
The USA were perhaps slightly lucky because Portugal were quite poor and Ghana imploded. But, they escaped from the Group of Death. Belgium had a much easier group compared to the USA. Both sides have problems in terms of personnel coming into this one. Jozy Altidore, injured in the opening round of games for the USA, has only just regained fitness. He is however set to lead the line once again. For Belgium, Steven Defour is suspended. There are doubts over Vincent Kompany and Thomas Vermaelen as well. Anthony Van den Boore is injured.
The brilliant individuals of Belgium need to gel as a team to overcome the USA. The USA meanwhile will rely on their team ethic to get through this match.
Who do you think will book their spot in the quarterfinals?
Team sheets
Belgium's First XI: Courtois, Alderweireld, Kompany (c), Vertonghen, Witsel, De Bruyne, Fellaini, Hazard, Mertens, Van Buyten, Origi
USA's First XI: Howard, Gonzalez, Bradley, Besler, Beasley, Dempsey (c), Bedoya, Jones, Zusi, Cameron, Johnson
Where to watch the match: Live Streams, Live Scores, Start Times, TV Channels:
Watch Belgium vs USA live on Tuesday, July 1, 2014:
In the US at 16.00 EST on:
- On TV: ESPN, ESPN Deportes, Univision Deportes USA, Univision USA
- Online & Apps:ESPN Deportes+, ESPN3 Online-App, Univision Deportes En Vivo, WATCH ESPN
- Audio / Radio: ESPN Deportes Radio, ESPN Radio, Futbol de Primera Radio, SiriusXM FC
In Canada at 16.00 ET on:
- On TV: CBC, Mediaset Italia, TVA Sports, Univision Canada, TLN
- Online & Apps: CBC Sports Live Streaming, Radio Canada - CBC, ICI Radio-Canada En Direct
- Audio / Radio: TSN 690 Montreal, TSN 1200 Ottawa, TSN 1050 Toronto, TEAM 1410 Vancouver
In the UK at 21.00 BST on:
- On TV: BBC One UK, BBC Red Button
- Online & Apps: The BBC iPlayer
- Audio / Radio: BBC Radio 5 Live, TalkSport Radio
In Australia at 06:00 (Wednesday on):
- On TV: SBS One Australia
- Audio / Radio: SBS Radio 3, SBS Radio 4
For complete details of match listings and live scores, visit the Belgium vs USA match page.
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