Belgium headed into the World Cup burdened with great expectation. Coach Marc Wilmots has a plethora of incredibly talented young players at his disposal who may well collectively make up the greatest national side in the Red Devils' history. An underwhelming start in retrospect was perhaps inevitable they'd have had to blow their group stage opponents off the continent to live up to the hype. But there's now no doubt they're a flawed side and one the United States could well beat on Tuesday.
However if the USMNT are to stand a chance they'll have to hope they're on a good day as their performances have been more than a little erratic so far. They squeaked unconvincingly past Ghana in their opening fixture before being unfortunate to miss out on a shock victory against Portugal in their second match. In their most recent fixture against Germany they lost 1 0 and barely put up a fight. A repeat performance wold make life much easier for the Red Devils.
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The good news for the USMNT is that Belgium head into the game with a string of injury and suspension concerns. Backup full back Anthony Vanden Borre will miss the rest of the tournament after breaking his ankle while midfielder Steven Defour is suspended after being sent off against South Korea. Vincent Kompany faces a late fitness test while Thomas Vermaelen is out. There are question marks over whether Marouane Fellaini will maintain his position alongside Axel Witsel in midfield and the off form Romelu Lukaku may well be replaced by youngster Divock Origi.
Meanwhile the USMNT should have a full strength team available including striker Jozy Altidore. There were fears his tournament was run after he was substituted early in the U.S.'s World Cup opener against Ghana though coach J rgen Klinsmann has declared himself confident the attacker would be fit to play against Belgium. He could come straight back into the starting lineup at the expense of Brad Davis.
Projected lineups (left to right)Belgium (4 2 3 1) Thibaut Courtois Jan Vertonghen Vincent Kompany Daniel van Buyten Toby Alderweireld Axel Witsel Marouane Fellaini Eden Hazard Kevin de Bruyne Dries Mertens Romelu Lukaku.
United States (4 4 1 1) Tim Howard DaMarcus Beasley Matt Besler Omar Gonzalez Fabian Johnson Jermaine Jones Kyle Beckerman Michael Bradley Graham Zusi Clint Dempsey Jozy Altidore.
Key matchupsBelgium's attack vs. the United States' defensive discipline Considering the number of creative players they have in their starting lineup Belgium have found it surprisingly difficult to break apart deep defences so far this tournament. It took them 70 minutes to score against Algeria 88 minutes to do so against Russia and 78 against South Korea. If they United States are disciplined when out of position then they could well have a similar stifling effect.
The key will be for Jermaine Jones Kyle Beckerman and Michael Bradley to ensure the midfield and defence play extremely close together when out of possession not allowing room for Eden Hazard Kevin De Bruyne and Dries Mertens to work their creative magic and thread cutting passes through the middle. If they do give them room their quick feat and brilliant vision will ensure the USMNT are punished.
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