The World Cup third place playoff is a game that no team wants to take part in. Both Belgium and England narrowly missed out on a spot in the World Cup Final, but instead have to settle for the potential to take a bronze medal home with them.
Belgium’s 1-0 defeat to France on Tuesday wasn’t exactly a shock, but it did highlight some key areas where Belgium were lacking. A tightly run French defence completely stifled the world class talents of Belgium, illustrating the lack of a plan B from Roberto Martinez’ side. The magical feet of Eden Hazard occasionally lit up the game, but Kevin De Bruyne was largely anonymous, save for one excellent pass through to Romelu Lukaku.
This, oddly, can be attributed to the suspension of Thomas Meunier. With no backup right back in the squad, Roberto Martinez was forced to switch to a back four against France. This decision led to Kevin De Bruyne returning to a deeper lying role in midfield, and his lack of impact in the final third was next to none. This was a huge contrast to his performance against Brazil, but with Meunier back we are likely to see the Manchester City playmaker shining again.
England’s semi-final was no less painful. They actually went ahead early on against Croatia thanks to a free kick from the wonderful Kieran Trippier, and it’s hard to escape the fact that the Three Lions could have had the game wrapped up by half-time if they had taken their chances. The second half was a different story entirely though, with Gareth Southgate’s men reverting to the England of old and panicking every time Croatia got near their box.
That happened quite a lot too, and eventually they paid the price as Ivan Perisic got his boot in front of the head of Kyle Walker to level the scores. Croatia continued to grow in confidence, and despite having played two extra time stints already this World Cup they managed to get in front via Mario Mandzukic after a shocking lapse in defensive concentration.
The third place playoff may not be where either of these teams hoped to be, but to be in the final four of a World Cup is always an achievement to be proud of. There is still an individual accolade to play for though, with both Harry Kane and Romelu Lukaku fighting for the Golden Boot. Kane leads the race with six goals, and Lukaku has four. Both of these will be eager to get on the scoresheet on Saturday, and considering their recent international performances, we’re expecting both of them to do just that.
What we can expect is goals. The comparative lack of importance of this match combined with the teams wanting to give their fans one last thing to cheer about means that there are usually plenty of goals in the third place playoff. There have been at least three goals in every World Cup third place playoff since 1974, and just one of the last six has seen fewer than four goals scored. This makes a bet of Over 3.5 Goals look very promising, along with a 2-2 correct score predictions.
Belgium Predicted Lineup: Courtois, Alderweireld, Kompany, Vertonghen, Meunier, Chadli, Witsel, Fellaini, De Bruyne, Hazard, Lukaku
England Predicted Lineup: Pickford, Jones, Stones, Maguire, Alexander-Arnold, Rose, Dier, Alli, Lingard, Sterling, Kane
HEAD TO HEAD
Belgium and England meet for the second time this World Cup after Belgium’s 1-0 win in the group stages. Prior to that England had lost just one of their previous 21 meetings with them, winning 15 times and drawing five. (Source)
| Zeusbet JUL 14, 2018 | 1X2 | DC | O/U 2.5 | GG/NG | DNB | |||||||||||||||
| ID | TIME | EVENTS |
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| 7353 | 15:00 | Belgium – England |
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+497 | ||||||||||||
BELGIUM VS ENGLAND STATS
Belgium and England are the first teams to face twice at a World Cup tournament since Turkey played Brazil twice at the 2002 World Cup.
Belgium have played in this fixture once before, finishing fourth in 1986 after losing 4-2 against France.
Belgium have lost just two of their 26 matches under Roberto Martinez – his first in charge in September 2016 (0-2 vs Spain) and his most recent (0-1 vs France in the semi-final).
England had 15 shots on target in their first two 2018 World Cup matches against Tunisia (8) and Panama (7) but have had just eight in their four games since – exactly two in each match.
England’s only other match in a World Cup third-place play-off match was at the 1990 World Cup – they faced Italy and lost 2-1.
Striker Romelu Lukaku has scored 23 goals in his 23 appearances under Roberto Martinez for Belgium, though he’s not scored in any of his last three. He’s never gone four games without a goal for the national side since the Spaniard has been in charge.
Harry Kane has had just one shot on target in his last three World Cup matches – his penalty goal against Colombia in the Last 16. Kane hasn’t had a shot on target in his last four hours and 33 minutes of action at the World Cup.
England’s defeat to Croatia in their last match was their 100th competitive defeat – each of their last six competitive defeats have been at major tournaments (five at the World Cup, one at the European Championships).
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