Belgium beats US 4-1 to reach World Cup quarterfinals, taking advantage of defensive lapses

SEATTLE (AP) — Images told the communicative of the United States' World Cup downfall.

Christian Pulisic sprawled connected the tract successful agony aft hurting an ankle.

Matt Freese holding his hands connected his caput aft his gaffe talented a goal.

Chris Richards crumpling to the ground, his look pressed connected the grass.

Mauricio Pochettino kicking a rack successful beforehand of the American bench, sending 4 h2o bottles flying.

American hopes for a heavy World Cup tally astatine location ended erstwhile Charles De Ketelaere scored doubly and assisted connected different goal, helping Belgium exposure the U.S. antiaircraft liabilities successful a 4-1 triumph Monday nighttime that earned a quarterfinal berth.

“It stinks,” Tyler Adams said. “This was a infinitesimal to person an accidental to beforehand and truly effort and bash thing special. We fell short.”

While the U.S. was boosted by the beingness of prima guardant Folarin Balogun, whose one-game red-card suspension was controversially lifted by FIFA, American defenders were astatine responsibility successful a brace of first-half goals and Freese’s howler gave the Red Devils a 3rd aboriginal successful the 2nd half.

Second-half substitute Romelu Lukaku added Belgium’s last extremity successful the 3rd infinitesimal of stoppage clip aft Richards’ giveaway. The U.S. hadn’t allowed that galore goals successful a World Cup crippled since a 5-1 nonaccomplishment to Czechoslovakia successful the Americans’ 1990 opener, erstwhile they returned to soccer’s biggest signifier aft a 40-year absence.

“A precise atrocious day,” said Pochettino, the U.S. coach. “It’s not similar you are successful a rocket and you amended and you grow. ... It’s not linear.”

This nonaccomplishment was a achy reckoning for a squad that hoped to boost the athletics but alternatively failed to shingle a quarter-century of stagnation since 20-year-old Landon Donovan led the Americans to the 2002 quarterfinals. Since then, the U.S. has mislaid 4 times successful the circular of 16.

“Everyone had nerves, right, due to the fact that we knew however overmuch this meant for the full country, not conscionable our team,” said 21-year-old defender Alex Freeman, the youngest U.S. player.

Belgium knocked retired the U.S. successful the circular of 16 for the 2nd clip successful 12 years and extended its unbeaten streak to 18 games. The Red Devils play 2010 champion Spain connected Friday astatine Inglewood, California, for a semifinal berth against France oregon Morocco.

“We showed that we’re acceptable and we privation to perform,” skipper Youri Tielemans said.

All six CONCACAF nations person been eliminated, with the 3 co-hosts falling successful the circular of 16.

Malik Tillman tied the people 1-1 midway done the archetypal fractional erstwhile helium became the archetypal subordinate since France's Bernard Genghini successful 1982 to person 2 escaped footwear goals successful a World Cup, but the Americans conceded conscionable 61 seconds aft the ensuing kickoff.

American prima Christian Pulisic could lone ticker the extremity from the seat aft injuring his close ankle erstwhile helium deed Tielemans' footwear connected a 52nd-minute changeable attempt. Pulisic was replaced 7 minutes later, finishing the tourney with nary goals.

“I didn’t rather person the moments I was hoping to and to effort to assistance america to truly propulsion and get implicit this adjacent measurement of beating a truly bully team,” helium said. “I’m disappointed with myself, of course, but I’m going to effort and enactment positive. I did a batch of bully things and the squad did, arsenic well.”

After winning 3 World Cup games for the archetypal clip successful this expanded 48-nation tournament, the U.S. mislaid its seventh consecutive lucifer to Belgium. The Americans person dropped 11 of their past 12 games against European opponents, winning lone their circular of 32 lucifer against Bosnia-Herzegovina.

A heralded procreation led by Pulisic, Adams and Weston McKennie lone partially accomplished their ngo of lifting soccer’s stature person to that of the NFL, MLB and the NBA.

“A extremity was evidently to animate radical that the athletics was increasing successful the U.S., which I deliberation we saw. The enactment was unbelievable,” Adams said. “In this infinitesimal we fto them down.”

De Ketelaere enactment Belgium up successful the eighth infinitesimal and Tillman’s extremity successful the 31st energized a mostly red-white-and-blue assemblage of 66,925 astatine Lumen Field. De Ketelaere damped that and assisted connected Hans Vanaken’s 57th-minute extremity aft Freese mislaid power of the shot successful beforehand of his net.

“Obviously disappointed for my engagement and mistake successful judgement connected the 3rd goal,” Freese said.

Belgium, which didn't commencement stars Jérémy Doku arsenic and Kevin De Bruyne, pressed from the commencement and exposed a defence regarded arsenic the Americans’ anemic spot.

Dodi Lukébakio made a agelong diagonal walk to the other corner, starring to the opening goal. Leandro Troussard controlled the shot and his transverse was blocked by Freeman and popped into the air. Freeman headed the shot into the punishment country and Timothy Castagne charged aft it and hooked a centering walk astir Richards. De Ketelaere divided Antonee Robinson and Tim Ream, astatine 38 the oldest American ever successful a World Cup, past with his close ft redirected the shot into an unfastened net.

Pochettino held retired his arms, arsenic if to ask: What was going on?

Tillman scored aft Brandon Mechele knocked down Balogun astir 25 yards from goal. Tillman’s footwear deflected disconnected Vanaken’s caput and deflected to the near of goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois, who had dived right.

Troussard got astir Sergiño Dest for a transverse and De Ketelaere outjumped Ream and headed the shot past Freese successful the 33rd infinitesimal for his eighth planetary goal.

Belgium built a two-goal pb erstwhile Mechele lofted a agelong shot that Freese chested aft 2 hops. Freese hesitated with a touch, past scrambled and kicked the shot disconnected De Ketelaere. Vanaken one-timed a changeable from 35 yards that deflected successful disconnected Ream.

Lukaku entered successful the 67th infinitesimal and scored his 93rd planetary goal.

Pochettino replaced Gregg Berhalter aft first-round elimination astatine the 2024 Copa America. His declaration expires this summertime and helium hasn't decided whether to enactment done the 2030 World Cup.

Instead of focusing connected Spain, Pochettino has a antithetic near-term agenda.

“To remainder a small bit, to think, to person conversation,” helium said, “and past spot what the determination is from the federation and from us.”

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AP Sports Writer Andrew Destin and Associated Press writer Eugene Johnson contributed to this report.

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