Lukaku heads Belgium past New Zealand into World Cup knockout stage

Romelu Lukaku needed only 64 seconds off the bench to put his stamp on Belgium’s 5-1 win over New Zealand at BC Place in Vancouver, a finish that turned a comfortable lead into a decisive rout. The header in the 86th minute did more than add a goal. It showed how Belgium could keep pressing with its starters, then raise the ceiling again with a striker who did not begin the match.

Belgium had already built control through Leandro Trossard, who scored in the 28th and 50th minutes, before Kevin De Bruyne made it 3-0 in the 66th minute. De Bruyne’s goal carried added weight: at 34 years and 363 days, he became the oldest player to score for Belgium at a World Cup. New Zealand briefly answered through Elijah Just in the 84th minute, but Lukaku’s header quickly restored the gap and Alexis Saelemaekers finished the scoring in the fourth minute of stoppage time.

The result sent Belgium to the top of Group G on goal difference and into the round of 16. New Zealand was eliminated. For Belgium, the win also ended the tension created by two opening draws, which had left the side needing victory to avoid an early exit and secure first place.

The performance was built on volume as much as precision. Belgium produced 35 shots and spent most of the match forcing New Zealand backward, a workload that made Lukaku’s entrance even more punishing. Coming on with fresh legs, he attacked a precise cross and buried the header at once, a reminder that Belgium’s bench can decide a tournament match without changing the game plan.

Lukaku’s decisive touch also fit the wider arc of his tournament. He had entered the World Cup after a disrupted season at Napoli that yielded just 64 minutes of club action, after injury and personal loss interrupted his preparation. Even so, Rudi Garcia kept faith in him, and Belgium’s attack answered again by turning a deep squad into a blunt instrument once the game opened.