Belgium coach Rudi Garcia has claimed his team has gained "millions and millions" of new supporters after Donald Trump lobbied FIFA to overturn Folarin Balogun's red card ahead of their victory against the USA in the round of 16. Garcia said they will draw "incredible strength" from that support in their quarter-final against Spain.
Trump's intervention and Belgium's response
Trump boasted that he phoned FIFA to suspend Balogun's ban after the striker was shown a direct red card against Bosnia and Herzegovina. Despite FIFA's unprecedented decision to suspend the ban for a year, Belgium defeated the USA 4-1. After the match, Belgium's football federation social media accounts declared "overturn this" and players celebrated by parodying Trump's dance. Garcia confirmed he spoke to Balogun, telling him he could not be blamed for Trump's lobbying or FIFA's decision.
Facing Spain in a hostile environment
Belgium will face Spain at Los Angeles Stadium, where the majority of the 80,000-capacity crowd is expected to be American supporters. Garcia insisted his team is ready, having already overcome a hostile reception against co-hosts USA in Seattle. "The conditions will only be as difficult as they were in the round of 16," Garcia said. "We had 12 million Belgium fans and now, over the last few days, I think we have millions and millions behind us; they have joined our ranks and I think that will be great."
Garcia's faith in his squad
Garcia acknowledged Spain's strength, calling them one of the favourites and praising their possession and defensive record. However, he noted that Belgium are the second-highest scoring team at the World Cup. "Everyone is talking about us going home but we can do it," he said. He highlighted the depth of his squad, saying, "I have two XIs: one that starts the game and one that finishes it."
Romelu Lukaku's impact off the bench
Garcia praised striker Romelu Lukaku, who has scored three goals and provided one assist in the tournament despite starting only one game. "When he comes on the opponents are quaking in their boots, they are much more worried," Garcia said. Lukaku, 33, has 93 international goals, ranking behind only Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, Ali Daei, and Sunil Chhetri. He averages a goal every 50 minutes at this World Cup.
Lukaku's readiness and role
Lukaku explained that he accepted a specific role after a conversation with Garcia in April. "I said 'OK' and here we are. Everything is going well," he said. He acknowledged his limited playing time for Napoli (64 minutes) and said starting every game would be "self-destructive." "If you get this far you're not going to just play to go home," Lukaku added. "We need to play the perfect game tomorrow."
