Belgium’s World Cup quarter-final preparations have been thrown into chaos hours before kick-off against Spain, after defender Zeno Debast was prohibited from playing by his club Sporting Lisbon. The Royal Belgian Football Association confirmed the 23-year-old will not be available, citing a dispute over his fitness following a thigh injury sustained in May. “His club, Sporting CP, have informed the player that they did not consider him to be medically fit to play matches,” a spokesperson said. “This assessment differs from that of the Red Devils’ medical staff, as well as Fifa’s medical and insurance authorities.”
Debast, who returned to Belgium for examination after his injury, missed the group stage – draws against Egypt and Iran, and a 5-1 win over New Zealand – and the round-of-32 victory against Senegal. He returned for the 4-1 win over the USA in the last 16 but now finds himself sidelined again. “Everything is going as planned. I feel good,” Debast had said earlier. “As a player, it is not easy to watch your team train and play without being able to participate. But, I am grateful to be here.”
“Belgium defender Zeno Debast banned by club Sporting Lisbon hours before World Cup quarter-final against Spain.”
Manager Rudi Garcia, already without midfielder Amadou Onana, refused to discuss the issue. “Everyone apart from Amadou Onana is ready,” he said. “He’s a huge loss for our tournament. There’s another player who is not available…”
Spain, meanwhile, are closing in on greatness under Luis de la Fuente. They are bidding to become just the fourth team to hold both the World Cup and European Championship crowns simultaneously, following their compatriots in 2010, France in 2000 and West Germany in 1974. De la Fuente, in his fourth year, has lost only three times since January 2023 and is on a 35-game unbeaten run. His philosophy centres on building a team of “good people”. “Those of us who have been in a locker room know what it means to be a good person,” he said. “Almost every squad has had the opposite, the player who disrupts harmony, who puts himself first.”
The winners of Friday’s quarter-final will face France in the semi-finals. For Belgium, the absence of Debast – and the fractious backdrop to his exclusion – threatens to derail a campaign that had gathered momentum.