Belgium beat England for third place | Sunday Observer

Belgium beat England for third place

15 July, 2018
Vincent Kompany (right) from Belgium competes for the ball against England’s Raheem Sterling
Vincent Kompany (right) from Belgium competes for the ball against England’s Raheem Sterling

England suffered another defeat as Belgium won the third place play-off match at the World Cup by two goals to nil.

Belgium secured the result in the first half itself when they scored a goal to take a 1-0 lead at half time before knocking in their second goal to seal the result and take the third place ahead of Sunday’s final between France and England.

England lost to Croatia while Belgium were beaten by France in the two semi final games.

England thus finished fourth, equalling their best ever achievement at an overseas World Cup and surpassing all reasonable people’s pre-tournament predictions.

Having said that, given how the draw panned out, this was a par result. Beyond results, however, they played or at least acted with a personality that rekindled their country’s affection for their national team and that will be the abiding memory for them.

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