After a dire first half, England vs. Belgium finally gave us something to talk about.
The first 45 minutes very much had the feel of an exhibition game as neither team showed much desire to break the deadlock given the situation at the top of Group G.
But Belgium took the match by the scruff of the neck shortly after the break when Adnan Januzaj scored one of the goals of the tournament.
The former Manchester United winger was given the chance to start in a heavily rotated Belgian side and he proved his worth when he cut in on his favoured left foot and curled a sumptuous effort beyond the flailing glove of England goalkeeper Jordan Pickford.
While jokes about David Moyes did the rounds online, Januzaj’s teammate Michy Batshuayi provided some viewers with their favourite moment of the World Cup.
GOAL! Januzaj gives @BelRedDevils the lead with a fantastic curling finish! pic.twitter.com/r2yIOomuwt
— ITV Football (@itvfootball) June 28, 2018
As the Chelsea forward looked to boot the ball into the back of the English net to celebrate Januzaj’s wonder-strike, he only managed to find the post before the ball then ricocheted back and walloped him in the face.
Batshuayi won’t mind too much, however, as Belgium finished top of Group G and secured a Round of 16 clash with Japan.
Considering the fact that he’s behind Romelu Lukaku in the Belgian pecking order and that his playing time will be limited moving forward, Batshuayi will hope that his only contribution to this World Cup won’t be a viral fail clip.
https://twitter.com/FairwayWedge/status/1012412555078393857
Michy Batshuayi kicking the ball against the post and hurting himself in my highlight of the World Cup
— Harry (@MrDavishPFC) June 28, 2018
Michy Batshuayi kicking the ball into his own head is the new highlight of the World Cup 😂
— Oliver (@Oli30045) June 28, 2018
https://twitter.com/PikeyZA/status/1012414840017735680
Germany finishing bottom of their group, and Michy Batshuayi kicking the ball off the post and back into his own face, are currently neck and neck in the battle for the greatest moment of the 2018 World Cup.
— maseysam (@MaseySam) June 28, 2018
As if Michy Batshuayi cunted the ball into his own face. That's the best moment of this tournament so far.
— Sheridan Sparkes (@SheridanSparkes) June 28, 2018