The opening game on the 6th day of the 2014 FIFA World Cup offered a first glimpse into the final group to start play, Group H. By the time Belgium and Algeria were set to square off there had already been 44 goals scored in the preceding 14 matches of the tournament.
A look into Group H would offer Chelsea fans a first look at several of their players as tournament dark-horses Belgium got their tournament underway. There was plenty of Chelsea representation from the start as Goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois, midfielder Eden Hazard and forward Romelu Lukaku were all in the Belgium starting 11. Former Blue and current VfL Wolfsburg midfielder Kevin De Bruyne also started having recently left Chelsea in the January transfer window.
There were more familiar faces in the starting line-ups in the shape of Tottenham’s Jan Vertonghen and Moussa Dembele and Manchester City’s Vincent Kompany for the Red Devils as Group H got underway. For Algeria, Tottenham youngster Nabil Bentaleb would also start.
The game had been heavily anticipated with many unsure what to expect from Wilmot’s Belgium side which is laden with big names who often star in the Premier League, but lack experience at major tournaments having not appeared in one for 12 years.
Algeria, surprisingly, had the better of the first few minutes, spending a lot of time inside the Belgian half of the pitch, although they did struggle to muster up any threatening chances. The Desert Foxes gave Belgium very little time on the ball and were well organized in their defending, leading to a lack of Belgian efforts.
The first save of the game was forced upon Mbolhi by Axel Witsel’s long range drive on 20 minutes, which added a slight intensity to the game.
However, against the run of play, Tottenham’s Jan Vertonghen bundled Algeria’s Feghouli leaving the referee with no choice but to point to the spot. The same Algeria man converted the penalty past a wrongful-guessing Courtois giving the African side a shock 1-nil lead in the 24th minute.
Belgium’s best efforts were still coming from long range with Axel Witsel once again hitting the target from distance and Algeria remaining organised and disciplined in order to retain their surprising lead. PFA Young Player of the Year winner Eden Hazard appeared to be their best source of penetration, notably setting up a chance for Chadli which was easily saved.
Just the one minute of added time gave Belgium little chance to get back into the game, as they went into the break trailing to Algeria’s shocking 24th minute penalty.
The 2nd half began with Belgium beginning to increase the pace of the game to their advantage. SSC Napoli midfielder Dries Mertens would come on soon after the 2nd half had begun replacing Chadli.
Algeria looked content at the beginning of the half to set up deep and hit the Belgians on the break for a possible insurance goal.
The Belgians began to take a bit more control of the game a created a few half decent chances through set pieces, but their sloppiness in the final third did them little favors in trying to get back into the game.
Algeria nearly got their security goal in the 57th minute off of a corner, after the ball was flicked on towards the back post where an unmarked El Arabi Soudani watched miserably as the ball sailed out of his reach.
With Lukaku’s first touch classically failing him once again, the 2nd of 3 vital subs by the Red Devils would take place in the 58th minute as 19 year old Lille OSC forward Divock Origi replaced him.
Manchester United midfielder Marouane Fellaini would enter the fray for the Belgians in the 64th minute to replace Dembele in the attacking midfield position.
Origi would prove more effective than Lukaku on the night when in the 66th minute he would receive the ball and run past all of the Algerian defenders before hitting his effort straight at the goalkeeper Rais Mbolhi.
Hazard would spring back to life in the 67th minute as he ran down the left wing bypassing all defenders to the goal-line before playing a low cross back across the face of goal. No one was there to follow up for the Belgians, and the score remained at 0-1.
Former CFC man Kevin De Bruyne would receive a pass from Hazard on the left wing where De Bruyne pulled the ball back away from goal before whipping in a lofted in-swinging cross that connected with a jumping Fellaini to flick backwards in the air and into the top of the net and over the diving keeper to finally bring the Red Devils level at 1-1.
Chelsea star Eden Hazard would contribute his efforts on a breakaway for the Belgians in the 80th minute as he ran at the defense, drawing defenders towards him, before playing the ball into space for Mertens on the right hand side of the box. The Napoli man would nail his outside of the foot shot from the right side of the box high into the near post corner, earning an assist for Hazard and scoring the winning goal for the Red Devils.
