Doku leaves training early but Belgium camp stays calm

Doku leaves training early, but no panic

Jeremy Doku cut short Tuesday's training session in Seattle as a precaution (2) (3). The early word is that the issue is nothing serious – he felt some discomfort and the staff pulled him immediately. With the World Cup opener against Egypt approaching, every fitness question gets magnified, but there's no alarm from within the camp tonight.

€435,000 per player and the World Cup rules you need to know

Every Belgian player in the squad will pocket €435,000 for the tournament, part of FIFA's total prize pool distribution (1). Matches can kick off as late as 6 a.m. Belgian time, so get your coffee ready. On the personal front: FIFA has confirmed players are allowed to have sex during the tournament – one less thing for the staff to police.

Onana: the most American Red Devil

Amadou Onana carries Kobe Bryant's mentality into this World Cup, calling ambition "a dirty word back in Belgium" (4). He and Diego Moreira were also spotted messing around during goal celebration recordings – squad morale looks high heading into the tournament (5). In a separate twist, a Canadian goalkeeper is training with the Red Devils in Seattle (5).

Analysts pick their XI for Egypt

Belgian pundits are coalescing around a starting eleven for the Egypt opener, with a Club Brugge connection at the back and the striker position still up for debate (6). Frank Boeckx's take: "You have to think in partnerships" – hinting at the Mechele–Debast pairing and a De Bruyne–Tielemans midfield axis. Thibaut Courtois, Brandon Mechele, Zeno Debast, Maxim De Cuyper, Thomas Meunier, Kevin De Bruyne, Youri Tielemans, Hans Vanaken, and Amadou Onana all feature in the projected lineup discussions.