Belgium stars Leandro Trossard and Youri Tielemans had to be separated by Romelu Lukaku and other team-mates minutes before they mounted a dramatic World Cup comeback against Senegal. The Arsenal and Aston Villa men were involved in a heated confrontation as they exchanged words midway through the second half.
Rudi Garcia’s side were trailing 2-0 at the of the incident after goals from Habib Diarra and Ismaila Sarr put the African side in the driving seat. Senegal were good value for their money, while Belgium flattered to deceive.
They looked a long way off the side that finished third in the World Cup in 2018, crashing out of the tournament against a team below them in FIFA’s world rankings.
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Frustrations boiled over just before the second hydration break in the clash in Washington. Tielemans had floated in a dangerous delivery to the far post, but no Belgium player made any attempt to attack the ball.
Lukaku stood motionless in the middle of the box, with Trossard and Tielemans then involved in a heated exchange after the cross failed to find a team-mate and drifted out of play.
Nicolas Raskin, who has just come onto the pitch in place of Kevin De Bruyne, had to step in to keep the two players apart as they made their way off the pitch, before towering team-mate Lukaku acted as a nightclub bouncer to push the pair away from one another.
View 2 ImagesLeandro Trossard and Youri Tielemans clashed during Belgium’s World Cup game with Senegal.(Image: (Photo by Alex Grimm/Getty Images))
However, the clash somehow seemed to spark Belgium into life, completely against the run of play. Minutes after the spat, subsitute Thomas Meunier hooked a loose ball towards Lukaku at the front post in the 86th minute. The Napoli forward – as he has throughout his international career – caressed the ball into the back of the net past Diaw with a neat first-time finish to reduce the deficit to one.
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There was just four minutes left on the clock for Belgium to find something and as if it were written, the two quarrelling Premier League stars combined to equalise late on.
Trossard hung a looping cross towards the far post and Tielemans rose highest – beating Senegal goalkeeper Diaw to the ball – powering a header into the back of the net.
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It was a howler from a Senegalese point of view, but Trossard and Tielemans seemed to put their differences behind them after combining for the goal. They hugged after getting Belgium back into the game, smiling as they made their way back to the halfway line, forcing the game into extra-time.
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