Belgium stars Leandro Trossard and Youri Tielemans had to be separated by Romelu Lukaku and other team-mates moments before they staged a stunning World Cup comeback against Senegal. The Arsenal and Aston Villa players became embroiled in a heated exchange as tempers flared midway through the second half.
Rudi Garcia’s side were trailing 2-0 at the time of the incident following goals from Habib Diarra and Ismaila Sarr which had put Senegal firmly in control.
Belgium appeared a far cry from the team that secured third place at the 2018 World Cup, on course to exit the competition against opponents ranked below them in FIFA’s standings.
Frustrations continued to rise ahead of the second hydration break during the match in Seattle. Tielemans had whipped in a cross towards the back post, yet not a single Belgium player attempted to meet it.
Lukaku had stood still in the middle of the penalty area, with Trossard and Tielemans subsequently engaging in an heated exchange after the delivery failed to locate a teammate and sailed harmlessly out of play.
Nicolas Raskin, who had only just entered the pitch as a substitute for Kevin De Bruyne, was forced to intervene to keep the duo separated as they headed towards the touchline, before Lukaku stepped in to separate the pair. Yet the confrontation appeared to galvanise Belgium entirely against the flow of the match.
Moments after the heated exchange, substitute Thomas Meunier placed a loose ball towards Lukaku at the front post in the 86th minute.
The Napoli striker — as he has done consistently throughout his international career — guided the ball into the net past Diaw with an elegant first-time finish to reduce the deficit to one.
Just four minutes remained for Belgium to create another chance, and as if scripted, the two feuding Premier League stars linked up to level matters late on.
Trossard delivered a cross towards the far post and Tielemans climbed highest — getting to the ball ahead of Senegal goalkeeper Diaw — directing a header into the back of the net.
It represented a disappointing error from Senegal’s perspective, but Trossard and Tielemans appeared to set aside their differences after combining for the equaliser. They embraced following their contribution to bring Belgium back into the match, grinning as they returned to the halfway line, sending the match into extra-time.
Belgium went on to win the game 3-2 with Tielemans on the score sheet yet again as he found the back of the net from the penaty spot to set up a last-16 tie against the United States.
The spot-kick was not originally awarded, but the referee checked VAR’s pitchside monitor and went on to point to the spot for Belgium after a foul by Lamine Camara on Tielemans.