At some point during Belgium’s 2026 World Cup group stage match against Senegal in Seattle, Youri Tielemans and Leandro Trossard stopped being teammates. For a few tense minutes around the 70th minute hydration break, they were something closer to opponents.
Tielemans, visibly frustrated, confronted Trossard over a decision to cross the ball rather than play a pass. Gestures flew. Words followed.
Belgium was trailing Senegal 2-0 at that point.
From confrontation to combination
Romelu Lukaku was among the teammates who stepped in to defuse the situation. The argument cooled. Belgium regrouped, at least enough to finish the match.
