Belgium Teammates Clash at World Cup: 'I Like That'

Tielemans emerged as the match-winner in the intense encounter, scoring the decisive 2-1 goal in the 125th minute, setting up a Round of 16 clash against host nation USA for Belgium. Earlier in the game, the midfielder drew attention for a heated exchange with teammate Trossard. Head coach Garcia, however, saw the spat between his two star players as a positive sign of their competitive spirit.

“Romelu Lukaku had already calmed them both down a bit. But I actually like that. It means we have a team that's alive. Players have the right to disagree. Players have the right to make their voices heard. Leandro and Youri are two very important players in the Belgian squad. They wanted to win so badly that I don't even know why they were arguing,” the national coach admitted.

"But I like that. I want players who are willing to shake things up when they're not going well. Because on the field, we need that 'grinta' – that fighting spirit. When I took over this team 18 months ago, I felt they played well with the ball, but defensively they weren't very aggressive; they forgot to engage in duels. You don't get results that way.”

Tielemans also briefly commented on the incident after the match, holding no grudges against his teammate. "Those are the emotions of the moment. We are all winners, and we all want to win and do things well, to represent our country in the best possible way. This is part of it. There's nothing wrong. It's just part of the game." The match-winner was given a penalty deep into extra time and flawlessly converted it. Romelu Lukaku was initially slated to take it, but the striker later stated he was 'not mentally ready' and therefore deferred to Tielemans.

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