Garcia defends subs after Belgium's 3–2 comeback against Senegal

Garcia: 'We won with 17, not 11'

Belgium 3–2 Senegal. From 0–2 down to a place in the last 16. Rudi Garcia is not apologising for the substitutes that changed the game. "It was not a substitution against De Bruyne and Doku, it was for those other guys," Garcia said after the comeback (7). Romelu Lukaku came off the bench and everything flipped (5). Garcia put it bluntly: "We didn't win with 11, we won with 17" (7).

Garcia's own history used against him

Garcia criticised Senegal's defending after they surrendered a 2–0 lead, but the French press fired back immediately. A Ligue 1 deep-dive shows Garcia's own teams collapsed from two-goal leads multiple times during his time in France (8). The irony was not lost.

Vanhaezebrouck: this result saved nothing

Hein Vanhaezebrouck did not celebrate. "If this isn't followed by something positive, it stays hanging over the manager like a sword of Damocles," he said (2). The escape was real, but the questions around Garcia's setup remain.

Lukaku stepped aside for Tielemans

Romelu Lukaku admitted he was not in the right headspace to take the penalty that completed the comeback. "I wanted to. But mentally I'm not ready for such difficult and crucial moments, so I'd rather leave it to Youri. The team comes before everything else," he told Football Italia.

Three pitch invaders with cameras

Three pitch invaders interrupted Belgium–Senegal, filming themselves with glasses-mounted cameras during the match (6). A bizarre footnote to an already chaotic night.

USA next in the last 16

Belgium face hosts United States in the round of 16 (3). Garcia has decisions to make. Stick with the comeback lineup? Or tweak it for a different kind of test?

Fan reactions

Belgian fans are riding the adrenaline. The clip of Belgian commentators losing their minds at the equaliser is circulating fast. On the Senegal side, the mood is raw, Pape Gueye called it a hard lesson, and one Senegalese interviewer accused the referee of favouring Belgium in front of Youri Tielemans. ITV's panel also weighed in, arguing the late penalty decision was VAR "re-refereeing the game" after the longest review of the tournament so far. Full thread here.