Belgium 0-0 Iran Half Time Thoughts: Iran Pose Major Set-Piece Threat As Belgium Struggle

It's all square at the break in Los Angeles, with neither team being able to break the deadlock in the opening 45 minutes.

Belgium dominated large portions of the half, having 80% possession, but struggled to break down an Iranian backline that at times had six players lined up in defence.

Despite their dominance, it was Iran that had the best chance of the half, after Belgium failed to clear their lines from a long throw-in. The ball eventually fell to Hossein Kanaani, whose effort was saved well by Thibaut Courtois.

We almost saw a replica of the Netherlands' very well-worked free-kick routine against Argentina in 2022, which was finished by Wout Weghorst, when Ehsan Hajsafi faked to shoot, before finding Mehdi Taremi, who turned brilliantly. He produced an excellent finish to beat Courtois, but was unfortunately marginally offside.

Many were surprised to see Romelu Lukaku starting this game, given his fitness issues. The 33-year-old looked off the pace and misplaced several passes.

On the other hand, Kevin De Bruyne has been much more influential in this game than against Egypt. Given the freedom to roam, De Bruyne has been everywhere across the front line, as he attempted to unlock the firm Iranian defence. He almost opened the scoring for the Red Devils, but his effort, heading for the bottom corner, was blocked.

In the absence of Jeremy Doku, both Leandro Trossard and Alexis Saelemaekers have looked good but have failed to make the most of their dominance in the first half.

A massively important 45 minutes ahead for Rudi Garcia's men, who will be desperate to get their first win on the board as they look to establish themselves as the top side in Group G. Iran, on the other hand, will be happy with a point, and will be encouraged by how their defence has been able to shut out Belgium's threat.