Article by Romeo Ene – Published on Tuesday, 02 June 2026 21:52 / Updated on Tuesday, 02 June 2026 21:52
Belgium he won Croatia with 2-0 in a friendly match played in Rijeka, the last important test for the two representatives before the World Championship.
Youri Tielemans (38') and Romelu Lukaku (90+6') scored for the “red devils”, who confirmed their excellent form and reached 12 consecutive matches without defeat.
On the other hand, the Croatians ticked off their second failure in a row, after the defeat suffered by Brazil in April, a rare situation for the 2018 world runner-up.
Belgium, victory with Croatia in the last friendly before the World Championship
The game started evenly, with a slight superiority of the hosts in the first minutes. Belgium struck first, however, in the 38th minute. Doku penetrated again on the left side and crossed to the edge of the grass.
Sutalo tried to intercept but deflected the ball towards De Cuyper. After a ricochet, the ball reached Youri Tielemans, who shot accurately from about eight meters into the long corner.
Two minutes later, the Belgians were close to 2-0. Doku again created danger down the left flank, but his shot was blocked by Livakovic.
Croatia responded in the 41st minute when Luka Modric came very close to equalizing. The Croatian veteran shot dangerously, but Courtois made an excellent save.
After the break, the two selectors made numerous changes. In the 62nd minute, Croatia was one step away from equalizing. Sucic crossed from the left side, and Budimir resumed with his head on the crossbar.
The Belgians responded in the 76th minute when Vanaken also hit the bar with a header.
However, the final belonged to the guests. In the 80th minute, Vuskovic came close to an own goal, but Kotarski avoided disaster. Entering the pitch with around 20 minutes to go, Romelu Lukaku constantly caused problems for the Croatian defence.
In the sixth minute of extra time, the Napoli striker closed the scoreboard. Vanaken recovered the ball and released Lukaku perfectly with a lobbed pass. The Belgian finished with a shot into the far corner, scoring his first goal in more than three months.
Belgium thus go to the World Championship with high morale, while Croatia suffer their second setback in a row.
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Belgium is part of Group G at the 2026 World Cup. Egypt, Iran and New Zealand are its opponents.
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Croatia is part of group L, and the opponents are England, Ghana and Panama.
