Football World Cup Quarter-Final: Spain Faces Belgium's 'Golden Generation'

Spain, the reigning European champion, is set to clash with Belgium in the second quarter-final of the Football World Cup. Postimees will provide live coverage of the match, scheduled to kick off at 10 p.m.

Spain enters the tournament as a favorite, having secured four victories without conceding a single goal. Their only slip-up was a 0-0 draw in their opening match against Cape Verde. In the Round of 16, Spain delivered a convincing 1-0 victory over Portugal, effectively ending Cristiano Ronaldo's World Cup career.

Belgium's squad features remaining members of their "golden generation." While Eden Hazard, Mousa Dembele, Marouane Fellaini, Vincent Kompany, Jan Vertonghen, and Toby Alderweireld are no longer with the team, Thibaut Courtois, Romelu Lukaku, Kevin De Bruyne, and Axel Witsel are striving to achieve what eluded them in previous tournaments.

Belgium has demonstrated significant grit, notably achieving a 3-2 overtime victory against Senegal after trailing 0-2 in the 85th minute. They followed this with a dominant 4-1 win over the United States, reigniting belief in the team. Coach Rudy Garcia advocates against labeling these players as "veterans," preferring to see them as valuable assets to the national team.

While Courtois remains one of the world's top goalkeepers and Lukaku has scored three goals off the bench, De Bruyne and Witsel have had more subdued performances. However, other players have stepped up. Midfielders Youri Tielemans (29) and Hans Vanaken (33), winger Leandro Trossard (31), and forward Charles De Ketelaere (25) have been key contributors. Winger Jeremy Doku (25), who was expected to be a standout, has been less impactful, even being benched for the USA match. In contrast, Spain's squad, led by the 18-year-old Lamine Yamal, is considerably younger, with only one player over 30 in their starting lineup against Portugal: 32-year-old defender Aymeric Laporte. The winner of the Belgium-Spain match will face France in the semi-finals.