Belgium coach Rudi Garcia believes his team showed the character needed for a World Cup campaign after recovering from a difficult start to earn a point against Egypt in their Group G opener.
The Pharaohs looked set to create history in Seattle after Emam Ashour scored his first international goal, putting Egypt ahead and threatening to deliver their first-ever World Cup victory.
But Belgium refused to collapse, with substitute Romelu Lukaku making the difference after his introduction to help the Red Devils find a late equaliser.
For Garcia, the response from his players mattered more than the result.
The Belgium boss highlighted the difficulty of facing an ambitious Egypt side while praising the depth of his squad after a substitute helped turn the match around.
“The opening match of a competition like the World Cup is always a tough one, especially against one of Africa’s top teams like Egypt. The important thing is that we stayed in the game,” said Garcia.
Egypt’s goal had placed Belgium under pressure, but Garcia was pleased with how his players remained focused and continued searching for a way back.
“We managed to equalise thanks to a player who came off the bench, which shows just how important the whole squad is.”
Seattle witnessed a memorable opening contest as Egypt came closer than ever to a World Cup breakthrough.
Before the match, the Pharaohs had only ever held a lead in a World Cup game for 29 minutes, had never won at the tournament and had recorded just one clean sheet.
Ashour’s strike briefly changed that history, but Lukaku’s late influence ensured Belgium avoided an opening defeat.
“It was a great game between two very good teams,” Garcia added.
Belgium now turn their attention to their next group fixture, while Egypt take confidence from a performance that showed they can compete on football’s biggest stage.
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