Mikel Merino turned a late spill from Senne Lammens into the goal that sent Spain into the World Cup semi-final, and the Fox One free trial angle is the cleanest way to follow the match live going forward. Belgium had already lost Thibaut Courtois to injury by then, and Spain’s late strike closed a game that had swung twice before the decisive mistake.
17 minutes after Lammens replaced Courtois, he spilled a shot from Pau Cubarsi and Merino finished with only his second touch of the game. Spain now move on to play France in Arlington on Tuesday, with a place in the final on the line for the team that made fewer errors in the area.
Courtois leaves after 71 minutes
71 minutes into the match, Senne Lammens came on after Thibaut Courtois exited injured and in tears, leaving Belgium with a goalkeeper change at the point where the game was still open. Luis de la Fuente had called Courtois “one of the world’s top five goalkeepers” before the match, and Belgium then had to finish the contest with a substitute in net.
30 minutes into the first half, Fabian Ruiz pounced on a rebound to put Spain ahead, forcing Belgium to chase the game rather than manage it. Belgium had reached the quarter-finals after a 4-1 win over USMNT, but that earlier margin did not carry over once Spain began controlling the key moments around the box.
Rodri hand appeal denied
Charles De Ketelaere pulled Belgium level with a header past Unai Simon after a Kevin De Bruyne pass, briefly changing the flow and giving Belgium a route back. Spain had not conceded for almost 11 hours before that goal, having kept five successive clean sheets against Cape Verde, Saudi Arabia, Uruguay, Austria and Portugal before this match.
Belgium also wanted a penalty when the ball struck Rodri’s arm in the box, but Michael Oliver and VAR did not give it. That decision left Belgium with one fewer path to equalize, and it made the late Lammens error even more costly.
France in Arlington on Tuesday
Spain’s route is now set: France in Arlington on Tuesday, after a match that rewarded the side that stayed cleaner at both ends. Whether Thibaut Courtois will be fit for Belgium’s next match is the unresolved issue left behind by a night that turned on a goalkeeper injury, a rebound, and one mistake in a crowded penalty area.
