Youri Tielemans, 29, and Leandro Trossard, 31, ended up in each other’s hoods.
Then they were behind Belgium’s turnaround against Senegal.
Belgium won their FIFA World Cup round of 16 with an emergency call.
With the two attacking stars Kevin De Bruyne and Jérémy Doku replaced early on, Belgium came back to equalize with two late goals against Senegal.
The match ended 2–2 after regular time and Belgium won 3–2 after extra time.
At the end of extra time, Belgian captain Youri Tielemans was brought down by Lamine Camara and Tielemans scored from the penalty spot five minutes into added time.
Tilemans was rock solid despite Senegalese defender Pathe Ciss trying to psych himself up by laying down just in front of the penalty spot.
The players fumed together
Belgium’s national team has often been marred by internal strife, but made it to the 2026 World Cup without any known conflicts.
Against Senegal, there was still a fight on the pitch.
Just before the second-half break, Leandro Trossard was furious with Youri Tielemans when the latter hit a cross instead of passing. The two players started shouting at each other and when the fight threatened to become physical, teammate Nicolas Raskin stepped in and prevented an escalation with the help of a couple of Senegalese players.
The battle ax then appeared to be put to one side when Belgium equalized at 2-2 in the 89th minute. Tielemans then headed the ball into the goal after a cross from Trossard.
In the round of 16, Belgium will face the winner of the round of 16 between the USA and Bosnia-Herzegovina.
