California [US], July 11 (ANI): Belgium goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois backed his replacement Senne Lammens after being forced off with an injury during the FIFA World Cup 2026 quarterfinal defeat against Spain, saying the young goalkeeper will only improve from the experience, according to Reuters.

Courtois was substituted in the 71st minute of Belgium's quarter-final clash against Spain, with Lammens replacing him between the posts.

The injury proved costly as Lammens was unable to hold Pau Cubarsi's long-range effort soon after coming on, allowing substitute Mikel Merino to score the rebound and give Spain a 2-1 victory.

Speaking after the match, Courtois revealed that he consoled Lammens after the match, acknowledging the difficult situation faced by a goalkeeper coming on during a high-pressure game.

'Senne Lammens, obviously, I gave him a big hug. I know, for goalkeepers, this is a shit feeling, and he's a great goalkeeper, and he will only get stronger from this,' Courtois told reporters, as quoted by Reuters.

The Belgium No. 1 also explained the injury that forced him to leave the field, saying he initially felt discomfort but continued after making some saves before the issue worsened.

'I felt something here in my muscle. Then, I did some saves, I felt okay, so I thought, okay, we'll continue. Then I kicked again long and I felt it a bit more,' Courtois said, as quoted by Reuters.

The decision for him to leave the field was made by team manager Rudi Garcia. 'Obviously, I wanted to continue, but yeah, the coach wanted someone 100%, so okay, that's his decision. I wanted to try to play maybe five, 10 more minutes to see, because in goal I was feeling good. I was making the saves, and I was not disturbed to make those saves, and I was only disturbed to kick long. So that's the decision of the coach, and that's not a problem.'

Spain defeated Belgium 2-1 in the FIFA World Cup 2026 quarter-finals to book a semi-final clash against France. Fabian Ruiz and substitute Mikel Merino scored for Spain, while Charles De Ketelaere netted Belgium's lone goal.

Belgium goalkeeper Courtois was forced off with an injury in the second half, and Merino scored the winner shortly after his replacement, Senne Lammens, spilled a long-range effort.

The victory extended Spain's unbeaten run to 36 matches, equalling Argentina's streak and leaving La Roja one game shy of Italy's world-record 37-match unbeaten run. (ANI)