Youri Tielemans ($6.1m) and Ismaila Sarr ($6.2m) hauled in a Seattle stunner that saw lifeless Belgium come back from two down to eventually defeat Senegal in extra time.

Set to go out quietly, Rudi Garcia’s side suddenly find themselves in the Round of 16.

We reflect on this game in our Scout Notes, which features match stats from our World Cup Toolkit page.

BELGIUM 3-2 SENEGAL

• Goals: Lukaku, Tielemans (x2, one pen) | H Diarra, Ismaila Sarr
• Assists: Meunier, Trossard | Ismaila Sarr, Niakhate
• Penalty won: Tielemans
• Penalty conceded: L Camara
• Tackle bonus: K Diatta
• Saves bonus: Courtois | Diaw
• Top points scorers: Tielemans (18), Ismaila Sarr (12), H Diarra (11), Lukaku (9), Trossard (7)

TEAM STATS

SCOUT NOTES

• Unsurprisingly, Belgium changed nothing from the XI that beat New Zealand 5-1.
• Senegal thrashed Iraq 5-0 but still made three alterations here. Iliman Ndiaye ($6.5m), Pape Gueye ($5.9m) and Pathe Ciss ($5.6m) came in for Abdoulaye Seck ($3.8m), Lamine Camara ($6.2m) and Ibrahim Mbaye ($4.4m).
• Entering the 86th minute, this article was all set up to praise Ismaila Sarr, who hit a double-digit Fantasy haul for a third successive match. He currently edges Ousmane Dembele ($10.0m), Lionel Messi ($10.0m) and Erling Haaland ($10.5m) into boasting the second-most points, behind Kylian Mbappe ($10.5m) – not bad company to keep!
• The Crystal Palace attacker is often a frustrating Fantasy Premier League (FPL) pick, and this first half saw two of his shots hit the post, although the second ended up assisting Habib Diarra‘s ($6.2m) tap-in.
• 1-0 up at half-time, Senegal’s dominance was reflected by 1.90 expected goals (xG).
• In the 51st minute, Sadio Mane‘s ($7.6m) cutback found Diarra but his effort trickled wide. Yet it was only a brief let-off for Belgium, as Sarr grabbed his goal when a long Moussa Niakhate ($4.3m) ball dropped between the two centre-backs. A beautiful chest control, followed by a blasted finish. Sarr has a tournament-leading 4.50 xG, but is on the plane home.
• They say a 2-0 lead is the most dangerous scoreline. Well, a trio of big Garcia calls ended up being vindicated. Romelu Lukaku ($7.4m) replaced Charles De Keletaere ($5.6m) at half-time, quickly followed by the shock removals of Kevin De Bruyne ($7.5m) and Jeremy Doku ($7.5m) – Fantasy’s two most-owned Belgian outfielders. Doku’s withdrawal, at least, was fitness-related:

“From the start, we knew Jérémy Doku couldn’t play 90 minutes because, once again, as you know, I told you and I’ll say it again: he didn’t train for seven days, so that’s no small matter. He did a few training sessions after his return.” – Rudi Garcia, via Futbol Fantasy

• One substitute, Dodi Lukebakio ($5.9m), soon went very close with a curled effort. Then, in the 86th minute, Lukaku gave a glimmer of hope by converting Thomas Meunier‘s ($4.8m) cross at the near post. Senegal’s clean sheet disappeared, but things were about to get worse. Three minutes later, a looping Leandro Trossard ($6.6m) cross lured Mory Diaw ($3.8m) off his line. But the goalkeeper was beaten to the ball by Tielemans’ soft header. Out of nowhere, Belgium took the game to extra time.

“We know teams like that: they lose their tactical structure towards the end of the match. We knew that at 2-0 they would do everything to protect their goal, which in my opinion is a serious mistake. Remind me when we’re 2-0 up not to do that. Because when you concede a goal like they did at 2-1, the whole feel of the match changes. And then it was pretty good to score in stoppage time, from a completely justified penalty.” – Belgium head coach Rudi Garcia

• Early on, Mane and Ismail Jakobs ($4.1m) made way for Nicolas Jackson ($6.7m) and El Hadji Malick Diouf ($4.1m).
• Although there were moments where Lukaku almost reached a bouncing ball and two Senegalese teenagers combined for a shot that edged wide, penalties looked certain. Instead, there only needed to be one. In the build-up to Lukebakio’s 117th-minute shot hitting the bar, there was a debatable foul on Tielemans by Lamine Camara, given after a long VAR check. Like during January’s controversial Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) final, Senegal tried some tricks to delay the spot kick. But Tielemans held his nerve and won the game.
• Based on the evidence of this game, it’s hard to recommend any Belgian defensive picks versus the United States.
• Lukaku made an impact but started just one of four, meaning he mightn’t be ready to play many minutes. Star player De Bruyne has accumulated 10 key passes and 18 attempts, though only four shots were on target. Perhaps Trossard or Tielemans can provide good attacking coverage? The Arsenal man is the tournament’s leading chance creator at the World Cup so far, with 16. Really, though, it’s arguably the USA players who you’d fancy more in the Round of 16, especially with home advantage. Indeed, the bookies narrowly back the co-hosts for their meeting in Seattle.