Kevin De…..Ketalare. While concentrating 16th round match USA’s No. 9 Folarin Balogun was all over the place, with Belgium coach Rudy Garcia loading up on his own False 9 move.
With the American striker’s red card dismissal dominating the narrative of the encounter, Garcia had already set out to plan an on-field response.
Part 1 of that plan was removing talisman Kevin De Bruyne from the starting sheet, as his returns were sparse through the first four games. And Part 2 was giving his 6-foot-4 versatile No. 9 Charles Ketelaire the freedom to perform many of his duties already — an attacking midfielder-cum-winger-cum-center forward.
Known for his De Bruyne-like vision and technical flair to back up his dribbling skills and intelligence, the Atalanta man was deployed in exactly the same way in pre-World Cup friendlies.
Dropping 25-year-old Di Catellare to the USA was a move that the co-hosts didn’t see coming, as Garcia also kept out Romelu Lukaku. The first half saw two quick goals from De Ketelere, who had gone under the radar in the first four games.
In the ninth minute the first strike was a tap-in from Shikari and the second was neutralized with a header from Leandro Trossard’s cross, which equalized Malik Tillman.
De Bruyne provided the assist for De Keteler’s first international goal in the Nations League third-place play-off against Italy. After his brace in Seattle, he now has six goals in his last nine appearances for Belgium.
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De Ketelaere was predicted to have a bright future in 2021 itself, with the Belgian golden generation in danger of passing without showing their individual brilliance. Yuri Tielemans was the bridge between two generations, but de Ketelere, who won Young Talent of the Year in 2019 ahead of Jeremy Doku, was faster.
Raised in Bruges, he was flopped by unpredictable growth in his first season at AC Milan until settling at 6-ft-3. But the Rossoneri had noticed his ability to score goals. As for Bruges, he overcame a UEFA Champions League draw with Paris Saint-Germain, which featured both Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe.
Belgium’s Charles de Ketelere (17) scores his first goal during the World Cup Round of 16 soccer match between the United States and Belgium, Monday, July 6, 2026, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Nick Didlik)
Hometown Club
De Ketteler’s love of football was nurtured at the Jan Bredel Stadium in Club Brugge – just 500 meters from his home. He loved his time as a ballboy in the arena – his second-best memory with the Red Devils. Their first – the World Cup in Russia where Belgium finished third.
“The bronze medal is there, but all the people came together to see the Devils,” he told dhnet.be in 2021. “I also remember the friendly against Slovakia very well. I was a ballboy and it was a lot of fun,” he added, referring to the 2-1 win in February 2013.
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The BBC reported how his name was graffitied on a wall near his home after an injury-time winner at Zenit St Petersburg. He joined the club at 7, and distanced himself from tennis, which he was good at, because Bruges was his fairy tale club in a fairy tale city. As his fame grew and they started calling him Prince Claras, he stopped visiting the neighborhood bakery because he was too shy to take selfies. He stayed at his mother’s place, watched darts on weekends and studied law.
While AC Milan never clicked, De Ketelaere found his home back east in Bergamo with Atalanta, first on loan and then permanently. He scored literally within minutes of his debut and settled into a versatile role where he had 32 goals and 31 assists.
Garcia deployed him closer to the box – to improve his sharpness.
Belgium went ballistic on l’affair Balogun. Behind the bombast and bedlam, García was slipping into his real false nine – changing the KDB to CDK and reorganizing the staff.