Kevin De Bruyne is officially starting and will captain Belgium today. Following intense speculation over his tactical deployment, head coach Rudi Garcia has named the Manchester City playmaker in his standard central attacking role to drive the team forward at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles.
With the 2026 World Cup Group G entirely up for grabs following a pair of opening-round draws, the structural setup of both teams reflects a high-stakes tactical battle.
Belgium has altered their frontline to add physical reinforcement, while Iran has rolled out an extremely compact, defensive unit designed to crowd out midfield spaces and hit hard on the counter-attack.
However, Rudi Garcia’s side will be without one of its main attacking threats, as Jeremy Doku has been ruled out of the match. The Manchester City winger was left out of the squad due to a recurring respiratory infection.
Belgium lineup
Rudi Garcia has made significant changes to the squad that labored to a 1-1 opening draw against Egypt, most notably handing Romelu Lukaku a starting spot after his dynamic second-half cameo rescued a point in Matchday 1.
Thibaut Courtois lines up between the posts. The back four features Thomas Meunier, Nathan Ngoy, Brandon Mechele, and Maxim De Cuyper. In the midfield, Nicolas Raskin and Alexis Saelemaekers flank Youri Tielemans to form a robust shield just behind De Bruyne. Up front, Leandro Trossard pairs with Lukaku to form a highly physical, technical attacking front line.
Belgium Starting XI: Thibaut Courtois; Thomas Meunier, Nathan Ngoy, Brandon Mechele, Maxim De Cuyper; Nicolas Raskin, Youri Tielemans, Alexis Saelemaekers, Kevin De Bruyne; Leandro Trossard, Romelu Lukaku.
Iran lineup
Coach Amir Ghalenoei has trusted a highly organized defensive framework to contain Belgium’s passing angles, banking on the stability that earned them a 2-2 draw with New Zealand.
Alireza Beiranvand starts in goal. The back five features Saleh Hardani, Ehsan Hajisafi, Shoja Khalilzadeh, Hossein Kanani, and Ali Nemati, giving them a broad wall to defend the penalty area. Ramin Rezaeian takes a versatile wide position. Saeid Ezatolahi and Saman Ghoddos anchor the central lanes, freeing up Mohammad Mohebbi to link up with lone target man Mehdi Taremi in transition.
Iran Starting XI: Alireza Beiranvand; Saleh Hardani, Ehsan Hajisafi, Shoja Khalilzadeh, Hossein Kanani, Ali Nemati, Ramin Rezaeian; Saeid Ezatolahi, Mohammad Mohebbi, Saman Ghoddos; Mehdi Taremi.
