The decisive blow came not from a Spanish boot but from a Belgian glove. With two minutes of normal time remaining and the score level at 1-1, Manchester United goalkeeper Senne Lammens, on as a substitute for the injured Thibaut Courtois, spilled a long-range effort from Pau Cubarsí. Mikel Merino, the Arsenal midfielder who had already snatched a late winner in the previous round, pounced on the rebound to fire Spain into a semi-final against France. The 2-1 scoreline was cruel on Belgium, who had fought back from Fabián Ruiz’s opener through a Charles De Ketelaere header, but it was the image of Courtois weeping on the bench that will linger from this quarter-final in Los Angeles.

Courtois had first signalled discomfort in his left thigh before the second-half hydration break, summoning the medical staff but opting to continue. By the 71st minute, however, the 34-year-old could no longer go on, sinking to the turf and then walking off with his gloves pressed to his face. Belgian teammates consoled him as he reached the dugout, where head coach Rudi Garcia embraced the goalkeeper. The injury compounded a dire evening for Belgium’s squad: captain Youri Tielemans had been withdrawn from the starting line-up just twelve minutes before kick-off with a suspected hamstring problem, and Kevin De Bruyne later limped off with cramp. Courtois, who had only recently returned from a six-week layoff with a right-thigh muscle injury sustained in the Champions League, now faces the prospect that this was his final World Cup appearance. With 21 tournament matches, he stands second only to Germany’s Manuel Neuer on the all-time list.

Lammens, a 24-year-old making his World Cup debut, was thrust into a contest that had been finely balanced. Spain had taken the lead through Ruiz, but Belgium’s response was swift and deserved. The error, when it came, was elementary: Cubarsí’s strike from 25 metres was struck with power but straight at the goalkeeper, who could only parry it into the path of the onrushing Merino. British commentators noted the harshness of the moment for a player asked to perform cold, while Spanish observers celebrated a second consecutive late intervention from Merino, a player whose knack for decisive goals has become a defining feature of this tournament.

Belgium’s campaign ends with a sense of what might have been, their injury list undermining a performance that had troubled the Spanish for long stretches. Spain, meanwhile, advance to a heavyweight semi-final against France, carrying the momentum of a side that has now found ways to win in the dying minutes of back-to-back knockout ties. For Courtois, the tears on the touchline spoke of a personal World Cup farewell, his body unable to carry him through one last stand.