Brilliant, Belgium. Brilliant. The radio in my car is very often tuned in to the Toronto sports channel that broadcasts the BBC commentary of World Cup matches. When the matches aren't on I sometimes listen to one particular program where the two hosts love the use of the word "brilliant" to describe football. Brilliant, they say over and over again, in admiration of the BBC voices.
Belgium were absolutely brilliant today. The players were brilliant, the tactics were brilliant and the win against the 5 times champions, Brazil, was brilliant. The manager, Roberto Martinez, was hounded out of Everton by the fans a couple of years ago. Today, he plotted a great win. Two nil down in the last match against Japan, he brought on Marouane Fellaini and Nacer Chadli. By the end they had each scored a goal and Belgium were off to the quarterfinals. Today they both started and, laugh as many will, at the unorthodox, sometimes clumsy Fellaini and the inclusion of Chadli, who had an injury-ridden season with the glamorous West Bromich Albion, there they were as a significat part of an incredible team performance that had Neymar, Coutinho and co. looking very ordinary.
Impressive as Belgium were the match was an example of the fine line between winning and losing football matches, between being the team that goes on to win the World Cup and being just another that lost in the quarterfinals. Belgium's first goal was an extremely fortuitous own goal and on another day a number of the many rebounds in front of the Belgium goal might have gone Brazil's way.
But Belgium it is who move on to play their neighbours France in the semifinal. The French were not as scintillating as the Belgians, and Uruguay, and Luis Suarez, definitely missed Edison Cavani. But France did enough with a little help from the Uruguayan keeper, Muslera. When he flapped at Griezmann's shot for the second French goal I was disappointed, not because that put France in very good position to win, but because it is sad to see a team lose this way on the greatest stage. If you are a teammate of Muslera, what do you say? It's ok, let's move on. But you know, really, that the guy has just messed up the team's chances of a win. And Muslera knows that he has screwed up and definitely doesn't believe a word of his teammates' encouragement. Not that I noticed any Uruguayan player going up to him. In a World Cup of so much individual and team brilliance that moment for Muslera was hard to see.
Tomorrow, Croatia or Russia and England or Sweden will make up the semifinal lineup. After today it's hard to imagine one of those four can challenge France or Belgium for the title.
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