Belgium head coach Rudi Garcia said the Belgian soccer federation was not “just defending itself or the national team, it’s defending football in general,” with its reaction to FIFA’s controversial decision to suspend the one-game red card ban for U.S. national team forward Folarin Balogun.
Balogun, who was sent off in the United States’ 2-0 round-of-32 win over Bosnia and Herzegovina, was due to miss his team’s round-of-16 clash against Belgium. But in a decision that shocked the soccer world, FIFA informed U.S. Soccer on Sunday morning that Balogun’s ban was suspended and he was available for selection. Here’s Garcia, speaking in French via a translator, ripping the decision and calling it ‘April Fools’:
💬 “The Belgian federation isn’t just defending itself or the national team; it’s defending football in general — its integrity and its ethics.
“As far as I recall, I think this is the first time in World Cup history that a decision like this has been made. Anyway, I’m the coach, so I’m going to focus on my team and the match — it doesn’t matter who makes up the USA’s starting lineup. What matters to me is the pitch, my team, winning, and reaching the quarterfinals.”
“I didn’t know that at the World Cup July 5 is actually April 1. It’s April Fools.”
