The Belgium team will be hoping to emulate their success in the 1986 World Cup in Mexico where they lost in the semi-finals to a certain Diego Maradona’s team Argentina. So, they do not have the most celebrated World Cup history unlike their opponents in the semi-final. The only team left in the tournament with wins in all of their matches during the regulation time, the Belgians will come into the match with brimming confidence. Also with fourteen goals scored so far, most in this World Cup, they will surely want to put the game to bed early in the match (just ask Brazil).
The experience will be crucial for the Belgium team to progress. They are the team with most players (15) returning from the 2014 World Cup quarter-final heartbreak in Brazil. With Eden Hazard, Kevin De Bruyne, Vincent Kompany, etc. all central players in both the World Cups. After coming through an excellent debut season with Manchester United, the onus will be on Romelu Lukaku to carry on the form. And with four goals already (second on the scoring charts), he will desperately want to finish as the leading goal scorer. Also with Hazard on brilliant form, there is no doubt that Belgium will be the team to find the back of the net easily.
France and Belgium are very familiar rivals, having played each other 73 times in history. But it is the Belgians who have a better head to head record, having won 30 to the French’s 24. While their last match ended in a 4-3 win for Belgium. So the onus will be on Belgium to deliver their long-standing promise of having a golden generation team.