FIFA World Cup : Belgium pip England to top Group G
Kaliningrad (Russia), June 29 : Belgium topped Group G after beating England 1-0 here on Thursday in a clash between teams who had already qualified for the FIFA World Cup pre-quarterfinals.
Adnan Januzaj's 51st minute strike proved to be the difference between the teams who were playing their third and final Group G game.
With this win, Belgium took their points tally to nine, while England have six points as they finished top-two in this group to enter the second round. In the next round, Belgium will meet Japan, while England will take on Colombia.
In Saransk, Tunisia defeated Panama 2-1 in the other game of the group to finish third with three points from three games. Tunisia and debutants Panama are eliminated from the tournament.
Against Tunisia and Panama, both England and Belgium had brilliant records in the two rounds of group matches, which ensured them early tickets to the round of 16.
Level on points, goal difference and goals scored, Thursday's game was decisive for the ranking.AA Both teams played a much changed starting XIs, with England resting eight of their players from the previous match and Belgium nine.
England started the game with more possession, but it was Belgium who appeared more menacing. The sixth minute saw Belgium's first threat, when Youri Tielemans received a pass from the right and slammed at the net from about 23 meters away. Everton goalkeeper Jordan Pickford made an excellent save.
Four minutes later, Januzaj delivered a cross to Marouane Fellaini, who nodded on it. Pickford tried to save but the ball rolled through him towards the line. It was Chelsea defender Gary Cahill who managed a last-second clearance.
Belgium gradually shifted the balance thereafter. Michy Batshuayi, the Borussia Dortmund forward who had a stoppage-time goal against Tunisia, caused chaos for England before the half-hour mark, which was later joined by Fellaini and Januzaj. It took some efforts from John Stones, Loftus-Cheek and Rashford to save the team amid scramble.
Shortly after that Trent Alexander-Arnold won a free-kick. He found Loftus-Cheek, who flicked the header wide.
The deadlock was broken six minutes into the second half, as Januzaj cut in from the right, passed over Tottenham Hotspur defender Danny Rose and thwacked a shot into the left corner of the net.
England almost equalized 15 minutes later, with the dribbling Marcus Rashford facing Belgium's goalkeeper one-to-one. It was the best chance for England but the Manchester United striker had his shot right wide.
They went close against 10 minutes before the full-time stroke with a free-kick 27 meters from the goal. Rashford aimed at the top-right corner but the ball flew over the bar.
Then Ruben Loftus-Cheek blazed down the right, before curling the shot again over the bar.
When it came to stoppage time, Belgium nearly doubled the lead. Substitute striker Dries Mertens lashed a dipping strike which was palmed out by Pickford.
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Day 8: Efforts to rescue 3-year-old Rajasthan girl from borewell in progress
Jaipur, Dec 30: Rescue operation of three-year-old Chetna who has been stuck in a 150-feet deep borewell since December 23 is still going on with the teams working day and night to dig a parallel tunnel.
In perhaps one of the longest rescue operations in the state, which is undergoing for over 160 hours, family members have blamed the administration for being negligent. The administration on the other hand has claimed it is one of the toughest operations.
"There is a rock-solid strata. Rain also posed a challenge.
"Teams are making continuous efforts to dig a parallel tunnel. About 6.5 feet of tunnel is pending to reach the girl," Kotputli-Behror District Collector Kalpana Agarwal said on Monday.
She said it is the toughest rescue operation in the state.
NDRF team in-charge Yogesh Kumar Meena told reporters that the rescue operation is going on continuously. The rock is hard and cutting it is becoming a challenge for the team.
He said the drilling is going on in the right direction and it is expected to complete the operation by Monday. A three-member team is working at a time to cut the rock.
The family members blamed the administration for the delay in carrying out the operation.
"It's been days my daughter is stuck in the well. She is suffering from hunger and thirst.
"She has not been taken out till now. If it was collector madam's child, would she let them be there for so long? Please get my daughter out as soon as possible," Dholi Devi had said on Saturday.
Former minister Rajendra Singh Gudha also visited the spot. He blamed the family for keeping the borewell open and also the administration for causing delay in carrying out the operation.
"Everyone is engaged in rescuing the girl but the administration delayed it. If the operation was carried out at war footing after the incident happened then the result would have been better.
"The preparations that were done in the last three days should have been done six days earlier. I got to know that the district collector took three days to reach the spot. It is matter of shame," Gudha told reporters on Sunday.
Chetna had fallen into the borewell while playing in the agriculture farm of her father in Badiyali Dhani under Sarund police station of Kotputli-Behror district of Rajasthan.
Initially, efforts were made to pull the girl out of the borewell with the help of a ring but all attempts failed. After two days of repeated attempts that fetched no results, a piling was brought to the spot on Wednesday morning and a parallel pit was dug.
With each passing moment, the hope for Chetna being well is diminishing as the rescue team was not able to supply any food or water to her.
Two weeks ago, a five-year-old boy fell into a borewell in Dausa district and the rescue operation lasted over 55 hours.
However, the boy lost the battle for his life by the time he was taken out.
