Spain expected to beat us, says Belgium coach Garcia
Translated from English, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.
At a glance
- Belgium coach Rudi Garcia embraces underdog status ahead of the World Cup quarter-final against Spain.
- Garcia believes his team can overcome favorites Spain, citing their strong attacking record and a previous win against the US in a hostile crowd.
- Striker Romelu Lukaku supports the coach's confidence, emphasizing the team's talent and the need for a perfect game.
Belgium coach Rudi Garcia is embracing the underdog role ahead of Friday's World Cup quarter-final against Spain. He stated that "everyone is already talking about us going home," but expressed confidence in his team's ability to achieve a significant upset.
Everyone is already talking about us going home. But we think that we can do it. We think we can pull it off, and weโre going to do everything we can to get to the semis.
Garcia highlighted Belgium's strong offensive performance in the tournament, noting they are among the top scorers with 13 goals and have taken the second-most shots. He dismissed concerns about playing in front of a potentially hostile crowd in Los Angeles, recalling their recent victory over co-hosts the United States in a similar environment.
We just beat the US, obviously, and again at a stadium where everyone was against us. So I donโt think the conditions will be any more difficult tomorrow.
Veteran striker Romelu Lukaku echoed his manager's sentiments, stressing that the team possesses the necessary talent to compete. "If you manage to get this far, then youโre not going to play a game just to go home," Lukaku told reporters. "Tomorrow we need to play the perfect game."
Itโs not the fans that score the goals. Weโre going to focus on what we can do. Weโve got enough on our plate with the Spanish squad that is a wonderful footballing team.
Originally published by Vanguard in English. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.