Alright lads, let’s break down this Round of 16 tie between the USA and Belgium in Seattle.
The States are playing on home soil, and their entire squad is young and relentless, pressing from kickoff to the final whistle. It’s a huge boost too: Balogun’s suspension has been lifted, so their top striker is available to lead the line. Pulisic and Dest keep tearing down the wings nonstop, and Belgium’s ageing centre-backs simply can’t keep up with their blistering pace. The only flaw for the US is that their full-backs push high up the pitch and leave huge gaps at the back for counters.
Belgium are stacked with world-class talent: De Bruyne, Lukaku and Doku drive their attack, and they’ll dominate possession while flooding the box with crosses every few minutes. The problem is their backline is past its prime, slow to turn and vulnerable in every group game. What’s worse, they played a full 120 minutes in the last round, so every starter will be running on empty once we get past the hour mark.
We all remember how the 2014 clash finished goalless after 90 minutes purely thanks to Tim Howard’s heroics. This time, both sides have clinical finishers and shaky defences, so clear-cut chances should pile up all game long. We’re not looking at a tight, low-scoring slog here by any stretch. I’m going for over 2.75 total goals in this fixture.