Charles De Ketelaere gave Belgium the breakthrough against Spain in the 41st minute on Friday, July 10, and the goal carried real weight in a World Cup quarterfinal at SoFi Stadium. It was Belgium’s first goal against Spain in the tournament and a reminder that the Red Devils have been scoring freely all the way through this run.
The goal that changed the contest
The finish came from a header, with De Ketelaere timing his run to turn Belgium’s pressure into a lead. Before that moment, Spain had gone 609 straight minutes without conceding a goal, while Unai Simon had been part of a defensive stretch that had looked increasingly hard to break.
That streak is now over. Belgium have already shown they can hurt teams in this World Cup, and their return of 13 goals in their past four matches underlined why Spain could not afford to switch off for even a moment.
Belgium’s attacking form continues
This was not an isolated flash from De Ketelaere either. Before the quarterfinal, he had already recorded a brace against the United States in the round of 16, and that form has made him one of Belgium’s key threats at the sharp end of the pitch.
For Spain, the bigger issue is that a six-match streak without conceding has been broken in the most unforgiving stage of the competition. In a quarterfinal, one lapse can be enough to change everything, and Belgium made sure of that with De Ketelaere’s third goal of the tournament.
The next stage now becomes about response. Spain have the quality to recover, but Belgium have shown enough in two matches to suggest they can live with the pressure and still find a decisive moment when it matters most.
