The host U.S. team faces Belgium early tomorrow morning (July 7, 3:00 a.m.) in Seattle, with Pochettino’s team looking to continue making history against the mediocre Belgians.

The hosts entered the tournament with high expectations and, based on their performance so far, are making their fans proud. They finished first in the group stage and comfortably advanced to the round of 32, where they faced Bosnia and, while not putting on a dazzling performance, secured a 2-0 victory, confirming their status as favorites. The undisputed star of their campaign so far has been Folarin Balogun with three goals, though he has found himself in the spotlight for more than just the right reasons.

In the match against Bosnia, he received a direct red card; nevertheless, following an appeal by Trump, FIFA invoked Article 27 and his suspension was carried over to next year.

Consequently, Pochettino is counting on him as usual for the Round of 16 match, while backup defender Mark McKenzie (Toulouse) is also returning to the squad. Seattle’s defensive midfielder, Roldan, remains doubtful, with his status to be determined at the last minute.

Meanwhile, Belgium also finished the group stage in first place and will face Senegal in the round of 32. There, Rudi Garcia’s team found themselves down 2-0, but they equalized late in regulation and managed to break the Africans’ resistance in extra time with a golden goal by Tielemans, advancing to the next round.

They will field a full squad, as Trossard will be available as usual, despite earlier doubts due to his knee injury.

The atmosphere of the match is expected to be tense, with the Belgian team overwhelmed by a sense of injustice following FIFA’s decision —which was orchestrated by Trump—to suspend Balogun’s suspension. The Belgians will take the field ready to prove themselves on the pitch.

Possible starting lineups:

USA (Mauricio Pochettino): Friz – Freeman, Richards, Riam, Robinson – McKennie, Adams, Tillman – Dest, Pepi, Pulisic.

Belgium (Rudi Garcia): Courtois – Castagne, Mehele, Teate, De Kuyper – Tielemans, Vanaken – Trossard, De Bruyne, Doku – De Ketelaar.

*photo source: AP