Belgium and England meet for the second time at the 2018 World Cup after the two Group G rivals lost their respective semi-finals to France and Croatia. The 3rd/4th-place play-off takes place on Saturday July 14 at St Petersburg’s Krestovsky Stadium, and will kick-off at 7:30 pm (IST).
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 focused French defence completely hit the world class talents of Belgium.
Belgium: Thibaut Courtois, Jan Vertonghen, Toby Alderweireld, Thomas Vermaelen, Thomas Meunier, Marouane Fellaini, Axel Witsel, Yannick Carrasco, Kevin de Bruyne, Romelu Lukaku, Eden Hazard
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Kieran Trippier will not feature in the 3rd/4th-place play-off after suffering a groin injury in the quarter-finals and he is unlikely to be the only first-team regular rested for the ‘unwanted’ final match of the tournament. Trent Alexander-Arnold could will play in place of Trippier, while Eric Dier, Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Fabian Delph, Danny Rose and Marcus Rashford could all come into the starting line-up.
England: Jordan Pickford, Gary Cahill, Phil Jones, Harry Maguire, Eric Dier, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Fabian Delph, Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Danny Rose, Harry Kane, Marcus Rashford