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Tielemans shrugs off furious Trossard row after Belgium's epic FIFA World Cup comeback: ‘Emotions of the moment’
Youri Tielemans and Leandro Trossard exchanged words, and the situation escalated to the point that they had to be physically separated by teammates.
Having scored the match-winner which sent Belgium into the Round of 16, Youri Tielemans downplayed his heated on-field altercation with teammate Leandro Trossard. The confrontation happened during Belgium's thrilling Round of 32 victory against Senegal. During the second-half hydration break, the pair faced off, with Senegal leading 2-0.
As the Belgium players gathered for the hydration break, Tielemans and Trossard exchanged words, and the situation escalated to the point that they had to be physically separated by Romelu Lukaku and Nicolas Raskin. During the altercation, Trossard was also seen pushing Tielemans in anger.
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But then Lady Luck had other plans as super sub Romelu Lukaku sparked an unlikely comeback in the 86th minute. With Belgium still trailing Trossard and Tielemans combined, the Arsenal star sent in a cross three minutes later. Tielemans headed in a dramatic equaliser, and it looked like there were no bad feelings between the two as he lifted Trossard into the air.
Tielemans finished the comeback in the 125th minute, converting a dramatic penalty as Belgium clinched a 3-2 victory and avoided penalties.
‘Afterwards, there was no issue’
Speaking after the match, Tielemans was asked about the confrontation by reporters and downplayed it. "No, look, those are the emotions of the moment. We're all winners. We all want to win. To do things right. To represent our country well, that's all part of it. That's part of football. Afterwards, there was no issue. So yeah, just a match," he said.
Trossard has also been in good form in the ongoing tournament, creating more chances (16) than any other player and providing the assist for Tielemans' equaliser.
Even Belgium head coach Rudi Garcia downplayed the incident and instead hailed it for showing team spirit.
"It shows we have a team with real spirit," he said.
"Players are allowed to disagree; they're allowed to trade heated words. Leandro and Youri are two very important players for the Belgian national team. They wanted to win so badly. I don't even know what the argument was about, but I like it. I want players who are ready to flip the table when things aren't going right. Because on the pitch, we need that. We need that fighting spirit," he added.
Belgium will face the USA in the Round of 16, who defeated Bosnia and Herzegovina 2-0, courtesy of goals from Folarin Balogun and Malik Tillman. But the co-hosts will miss Balogun in the upcoming match due to a red card.
