World Cup 2018: Belgium eliminated Brazil
Fernandinho's own goal and Kevin De Bruyne's unstoppable 20-yard strike proved Brazilian in their FIFA World Cup 2018 quarterfinal match to win 2-1 and set up a semi-final clash.
Belgium reached the World Cup semifinals for the first time in 32 years by holding off five-time champions Brazil 2-1 Friday, sending Neymar home without living up to the expectations of football's most expensive player.
Belgium scored the decisive goal on a counter-attack just after a corner was taken by Neymar. Romelu Lukaku surged forward with the ball and Kevin De Bruyne put it in the net to give Belgium a 2-0 lead in the 31st minute.
"This was the biggest test for us," De Bruyne said. "Brazil was so strong in attack."
The opener came after a bit of good fortune. Fernandinho's trailing arm inadvertently helped Belgium captain Vincent Kompany's header in his own net in 13th minute.
As Belgium lost cohesiveness in the second half and Brazil's changes stirred the team, substitute Renato Augusto reduced the deficit in the 76th with a header.But it was too late for Brazil to be a equalizer for the game in excess time thwarted by Belgium goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois
For the third time in a World Cup - after 1982 and 2006 - the semi-finals will feature only European teams.Belgium and France will meet in St. On Sunday, there will be either England or Sweden against either Russia or Croatia. The other two quarter-final matches will be played Sunday.
Humiliated 7-1 by Germany in the semi-finals fours year ago on home soil, Brazil did not even get that much time. Just like defending champion Germany and Argentina before them, the Kazan Arena is where Brazil's World Cup challenge ended.
"This is beating Brazil in the World Cup, in the knockout," Belgium coach Roberto Martinez said. "Just treasure it and pass it down in the generations."
Belgium is now on a 24-match unbeaten streak. There is guaranteed to be a fourth straight European team winning team on July 15 in Moscow.The Belgian team, which finished fourth at the 1986 tournament and has never won the European Championship, will hope its golden generation
"Now we need more energy for the next game," Martinez said, "so let's make sure that we're all together and we're all driving a second to be as good as we can ... in the semiinal."
With eight shutouts in the last nine games, including three in the four games in Russia, Brazil had the toughest defense of the remaining teams at the World Cup. But Tatarstan in 13 minutes after it was broken. Fernandinho's own-goal ensured, for first time since March 2017, that Brazil was trailing in a competitive match. Unlike then - an endual 4-1 win over Uruguay - there was no comeback. While the court was proven to be an impenetrable barrier in the Belgium goal, Marcelo's strike before the lead was extended
Criticized for his play-acting, Neymar then went down to lightly under minimal contact from Marouane Fellaini at the start of the second half. But as the referee began to seek a video review, Neymar appeared to him against it.A booking - if he got one for diving - would have ruled him out of the semi-finals.
But after reaching the last four looks a increasingly unlikely proposition. Even after Philippe Coutinho's cross was headed by Augusto, who managed to evade center backs Vincent Kompany and Jan Vertonghen Paulinho replacing after three minutes.
"Sometimes you have to accept that Brazil has got this finesse, and that they're going to break you down, and (Belgium) just refuse to accept that. This is something special."