It’s Spain vs Belgium. One of the World Cup favourites, against the team that knocked out the United States.There is a feeling that Spain, the European champions, are yet to hit the heights they are truly capable of. To reach Friday’s quarter-final at the SoFi stadium, they have not really needed to. Has Barcelona star Lamine Yamal, who turns 19 on Monday, just been saving his best for the tournament’s latter stages?Belgium’s 4-1 win over the U.S. came after FIFA suspended Folarin Balogun’s red card ban, causing huge controversy. Rudi Garcia’s team acquitted themselves well in difficult circumstances — but now they face a much tougher test. Spain are the only team not to have conceded a goal this tournament.Here’s what to know about the match — with the winners to face France in the semi-finals on Tuesday.Get free access to the most comprehensive World Cup coverage in The Athletic appWhat’s the key info I need to know?World rankings: Spain (FIFA ranking 3) vs Belgium (8)
Venue: SoFi Stadium, Inglewood, California
Date: Friday, July 10
Kick-off: 12pm PDT / 3pm EDT / 8pm BSTHow did Spain reach the quarter-finals?Spain finished top of Group H with seven points after recording two victories and one draw.Luis de la Fuente’s side began their campaign with a goalless draw against Cape Verde before beating Saudi Arabia 4-0 and Uruguay 1-0.Spain then defeated Austria 3-0 in the round of 32. In the last 16, Mikel Merino’s stoppage-time goal secured a 1-0 victory over Portugal.How did Belgium reach the quarter-finals?Belgium topped Group G with five points. Rudi Garcia’s side drew 1-1 with Egypt and 0-0 with Iran before finishing the group stage with a 5-1 victory over New Zealand.They then produced a remarkable comeback against Senegal in the round of 32. Trailing 2-0 with five minutes of normal time remaining, goals from Romelu Lukaku and Youri Tielemans forced extra time before Tielemans converted a late penalty to complete a 3-2 victory.Belgium then beat co-hosts the United States 4-1 in the last 16.How to watch on TVUSA: 12pm PDT / 3pm EDT: FOX (English), Telemundo / Peacock (Spanish)Mexico: 1pm CST: ViXCanada: 12pm PDT / 3pm EDT: TSN/RDSUnited Kingdom: 8pm BST: BBC One and BBC iPlayerWhat should we expect from Spain?Spain’s progress through the tournament has been relatively comfortable. De la Fuente’s side have not needed to reach the levels they showed when winning the European Championship two years ago.The constant through all five of their matches has been a water-tight defence, with goalkeeper Unai Simon keeping five clean sheets, helping set an all-time tournament record of 609 minutes without conceding (extending back into their run at the 2022 World Cup).Spain’s defence has been rock solid so far. Can Belgium find a way through? Simon (Lars Baron/Getty Images)While defenders Aymeric Laporte and Pau Cubarsi have been outstanding, a lot of Spain’s solidity comes from being able to control possession and territory by holding the ball for long spells, and also winning it back quickly through a well-organised collective high-press.However, Spain’s attacking has been more hit-and-miss so far. Centre-forward Mikel Oyarzabal scored impressive doubles in the wins against Saudi Arabia and Austria, but the team lacked a cutting edge for long periods against Uruguay and Portugal.A promising feature has been superstar 18-year-old winger Lamine Yamal and 30-year-old holding midfielder Rodri being able to play their way towards full form and fitness.De la Fuente’s main selection issue is in the No 10 role. Dani Olmo has had a quite good tournament so far, but Merino came off the bench to score the 91st-minute winner against Portugal in the last 16.There is also the possibility of introducing Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Fabian Ruiz for Barcelona’s Pedri, who has not been at his best. Alex Baena seems set to continue on the left wing, given his decent performances so far.Dermot CorriganWhat should we expect from Belgium?In the group stage, Belgium looked like a team without an identity, but since manager Garcia ripped up the script when trailing 2-0 to Senegal in their last-32 tie, they have been transformed. Shorn of their big names, they have appeared far more cohesive and balanced.That will likely mean a place on the bench for both Kevin De Bruyne and Jeremy Doku against Spain — as was the case against the United States in the previous round.“If someone had told me I’d do that before the tournament started, even I wouldn’t have believed it,” Garcia said at a press conference. But it is an evolution he has been forced into. Belgium were too individualistic and did not have the legs to press as a unit or pick up loose balls.Belgium forward De Ketelaere scored two goals in the 4-1 victory over the United States (Alex Grimm/Getty Images)They were heading out against Senegal until he sacrificed the two stars of the team, replacing Doku with Benfica winger Dodi Lukebakio and De Bruyne with Rangers midfielder Nicolas Raskin.On the face of it, it did not look like a particularly attacking move, with Raskin specialising in ball-winning rather than defence-splitting passes. However, he kept his place against the U.S. and alongside Amadou Onana and Tielemans.Sadly for Onana, an anterior cruciate ligament injury suffered in the 21st minute cut short his first start of the tournament, but even after Club Brugge captain Hans Vanaken came on, Belgium maintained their supremacy. Bringing Lukaku and Doku off the bench later in the game, when there was more space to break into, proved to be very useful.It is likely that Garcia will retain the team that started, given they are up against Spain, who will look to dominate possession. De Bruyne did not even get off the bench in the last game, but Belgium have a more solid base that they can sprinkle some magic on later in the game, if need be.Anantaajith RaghuramanWho is the star player for each team?We are yet to really see Yamal burst into life in this tournament. He was subdued again by Portugal’s Nuno Mendes in the last 16 and, when the left-back was forced off injured, his replacement Nelson Semedo did a decent job of containing the winger, too.Yamal and Cristiano Ronaldo embrace following Spain’s 1-0 victory over Portugal (Ronaldo Schemidt/AFP via Getty Images)Against a Belgium defence that has had its issues in this tournament, perhaps this will be the game he truly announces himself on the World Cup stage. Olmo was one of the few attacking starters to impress against Portugal and Spain have looked better going forward since he was inserted into the line-up.Belgium’s biggest stars in Lukaku and De Bruyne may not start this match, and the team’s recent improvement has been a collective effort. Leandro Trossard leads all players for chances created with 17, while Tielemans’ composure in midfield and box-crashing runs have been crucial.Anantaajith RaghuramanIs there any history in this match-up?The two teams have met 23 times, beginning with Belgium beating Spain 3-1 at the 1920 Olympics on home turf in Antwerp.Their highest profile meeting to date came in the quarter-finals of the 1986 World Cup in Mexico. Jan Ceulemans’ diving header put Belgium in front, but Spain equalised with five minutes left via a 30-yard thunderbolt from Juan Senor. That led to a penalty shoot-out in which Belgian goalkeeper Jean-Marie Pfaff’s save from Eloy Olaya was crucial, beginning a run of just one win in five shootouts for Spain at World Cups.Spain got a measure of revenge four years later in 2-1 group-phase win at Italia 1990, which saw Spain through as group winners while Belgium qualified in second place.Spain 2010 vs. Spain 2026: Combined XIReuben Pinder and Joe CrisalliThe Spanish have won all five meetings during the 21st century, including two qualifying victories on the way to World Cup 2010. A 5-0 victory in La Coruna served notice of what they would be capable of at the tournament in South Africa.Their most recent meeting came in Brussels in September 2016 — a 2-0 friendly win for Spain in which Belgium’s Thibaut Courtois, Lukaku, Thomas Meunier and De Bruyne all played.Where will the game be won and lost?Out wide.Yamal is one of the biggest one-on-one threats in the tournament and while he has not come to the party just yet, there have been occasional signs of his brilliance and promising link-up play with right-back Pedro Porro.On the other side, Marc Cucurella and Baena have been excellent at overloading the wide spots to create opportunities for runs in behind, like the one below against Austria.Belgium under Garcia have regularly used off-the-ball runs from their full-backs to support the wingers in getting dangerous balls into the box, as in the example below from their 5-1 win over New Zealand.Both teams have created three chances from low crosses, the joint-highest at the tournament (along with the Netherlands and Switzerland). Belgium rank first for first-time shots with 58, with Spain not far behind in third with 46.The other key factor is how effective both teams are out of possession.Spain counter-press aggressively when they lose the ball and that has been effective. Belgium have had issues in preventing teams from bypassing their midfield, while their six errors leading to a shot only trailing the United States and Brazil (seven each). They have conceded 53 shots in total, nearly double Spain’s 29.Anantaajith RaghuramanWho do our experts think will win?Stuart James: Spain 2-0 Belgium. From an attacking point of view, Spain were really underwhelming against Portugal. But this feels like the kind of game where Yamal might cut loose. We’ve not really seen the best of him yet; there’s still time. As for Belgium, they had their moment in the sun against the USA. That result was hugely impressive, but this is a big step up in class.Dermot Corrigan: Spain 2-0 Belgium. From here in Madrid, it’s difficult to see Spain not winning this. Their defence has been watertight, their midfield seems set to control the tempo again, and Yamal looks really hungry to make his mark.Pol Ballús: Spain 2-0 Belgium. I can’t see Spain losing this one. They are getting better as the games go by, and I sense Belgium have already done more than many people expected.Mikel Merino’s 91st-minute goal secured Spain’s place in the quarter-finals (Thomas Coex/AFP via Getty Images)Anantaajith Raghuraman: Spain 2-0 Belgium. I think the match will be tighter than this prediction suggests, but Spain will exploit the weaknesses in Belgium’s structure and lean on their defensive strength to see this one out.Tomás Hill López-Menchero: Spain 3-1 Belgium. I predict this will be a far more open game than Spain’s last-16 victory against Portugal, with Belgium stunning the European champions by taking an early lead. But expect De la Fuente’s side to then get into their groove, with Yamal netting his first goal(s) since the group stage as they book a place in the semi-finals.Phil Hay: Spain 2-0 Belgium. Spain haven’t gone to town on anybody yet, and Belgium are probably too good to let that happen — without actually being good enough to turn the Spanish over. The reality with Spain is that they’re sliding through the rounds without a great deal of fuss. Their draw with Cape Verde wasn’t flattering, true, but it was also their first swing at these finals and we soon learned that Cape Verde were better than a side making up the numbers. Belgium have to go with Charles De Ketelaere up front. They don’t have a perfect option at nine but he’s a better pick than Romelu Lukaku. Spain, though, have superior talent, they have more know-how in their squad and without looking spectacular, they’re coming to the boil. Lamine Yamal turning it on against Austria was ominous.How might they line up?Tell me one thing about Spain that’s going to make me look clever to my friendsNo team has drawn their opponents offside more often at this tournament than Spain (18 occasions).Simultaneously, no team has won more possessions in the final third than their 36. They have in-possession quality, but their success is grounded in excellence without the ball.Anantaajith RaghuramanTell me one thing about Belgium that’s going to make me look clever to my friendsBelgium have have 32 shots at this tournament blocked by an opponent, more than any other team.Only 14 of their 107 total efforts have been clear shots — defined as shots with zero or one defender in the way — and they have scored with 13 of those, a better ratio than France (14 from 18), England (11 from 15) and Spain (nine from 12).Anantaajith RaghuramanWho is the referee?Referee Michael Oliver will take charge of his seventh World Cup match — more than any other Englishman.Who will the winners play next? And when/where?The winners will face France in the semi-finals.That match will take place at the AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas — on Tuesday, July 14. Kick-off is scheduled for 3pm EDT / 12pm PDT / 8pm BST, which is 2pm local time (CDT).Essential reading before the game
