Amadou Onana has been ruled out of the rest of the World Cup and will miss much of the upcoming season after the Belgium and Aston Villa midfielder suffered a knee injury in his country’s last-16 win over USA.
Onana’s knee buckled under him as he twisted during the first half, without contact from an opponent. After treatment, the 24-year-old was later seen returning to the Belgian bench using crutches and wearing a knee brace as he watched his teammates secure a 4-1 victory in Seattle to knock out their American hosts.
Multiple reports have since confirmed the news that Onana, who was making his second World Cup start, ruptured his anterior cruciate ligament, an injury which typically takes at least six months to recover from.
Belgium striker Charles De Ketelaere scored twice in a game overshadowed by Fifa’s controversial decision to suspend US forward Folarin Balogun's ban.
De Ketelaere gave Belgium the lead in the ninth minute with a simple tap-in, taking full advantage of a nervous start by the US to quickly deflate the partisan crowd.
Malik Tillman equalised in the 31st minute with a deflected free kick which wrong-footed Thibaut Courtois, but De Ketelaere restored Belgium's lead little more than a minute later with a back-post header.
The US played with more authority after the break until a calamitous error from goalkeeper Matt Freese allowed substitute Hans Vanaken to score in the 57th minute, irreversibly shifting the momentum in a stunned Seattle Stadium.
Romelu Lukaku then added a fourth in added time to send US fans streaming for the exits and Belgium into the quarter-finals for the third time in the last four World Cups. They will play European champions Spain in Los Angeles on Friday.
