Video: Belgium’s Michy Batshuayi faces up to World Cup mockery

The striker’s moment of misfortune was not
missed by Twitter users

One-Minute Read

Batshuayi even managed to outshine Adnan Januzaj, which is
saying something, seeing as the former Manchester United player
scored the only goal of a tedious game with a delicately crafted
shot that curled its way past Jordan Pickford into the English
net.

Batshuayi had a front-row seat for the strike, and as the
ball bounced back out of the goal the Chelsea forward went to smash
it back whence it came by way of celebration. But bear in mind this
is Batshuayi we’re talking about, and the Blues hitman hasn’t been
at his sharpest of late. He missed numerous chances against Tunisia
last Saturday but surely now he couldn’t fail to find the back of
net.

But he did. Batshuayi somehow contrived to clatter the
ball against the upright and it rebounded off the woodwork and
whacked him flush in the face.

“That sums up his luck at the moment,” chortled Ian Wright
on ITV, one of millions who couldn’t stop laughing for the rest of
the match.

To his credit, Batshuayi took swift ownership of his
spectacular faux pas, taking all the mockery on the chin, which
makes a change from a ball in his face.

While his teammates talked about the win, and the fact they will
now play Japan in the last 16 on Monday, while England, as group
runners-up take on Colombia the following night, Batshuayi logged
onto his Twitter account and unsurprisingly found himself a
meme. “Ahahha I knew I would be f***** the minute I come to my
mentions [sic],” he wrote to his followers. “Why am I so stupid
bro. Still hurts.”

He then uploaded a photograph of himself about to blast
the ball into the empty England net with the caption: “The second
just before I knew I f*cked up.”

As Paddy Power commented: “There’s been some wonderful
football, and incredible drama so far at this World Cup. Michy
Batshuayi celebrating a goal by kicking the ball off the post and
straight into his own face tops the f******g lot
though.”

Belgium’s victory means they finish top of group G and
will now face group H runners-up Japan in the round of 16 in
Rostov-on-Don on Monday 2 July at 7pm. Then on Tuesday 3 July
England play group H winners Colombia in Moscow at 7pm.

How Twitter reacted