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WORLD CUP USA ’94 / THE FIRST ROUND : Spotlight : FALLING BACK IN GROUP F

By HELENE ELLIOTT
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Belgium Coach Paul Van Himst will revamp his lineup to produce a more conservative, defensive style than he used in Sunday’s opening 1-0 victory over Morocco.

Van Himst will ditch his 3-4-3 alignment in favor of a formation that employs two forwards. The extra player might be in the midfield or on defense.

His reasons? He saw his defense wilt in the Florida heat Sunday, and he realized Group F is shaping up tougher than anticipated. If he initially regarded Saudi Arabia lightly, he changed his mind after seeing the Saudis’ strong performance against the Netherlands on Monday. That means Belgium can’t lose to Holland and expect to automatically make up those three points later, against Saudi Arabia.

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“I was very surprised at how well the Saudis defended themselves. They defended themselves very well,” Van Himst said Tuesday. “I was surprised how well prepared they were.”

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Helene Elliott

Helene Elliott was with the Los Angeles Times’ Sports department from 1989 to 2024, first as a staff writer and then, starting in 2006, as a columnist. She became the first female journalist to be honored with a plaque in the Hall of Fame of a major professional sport as the 2005 winner of the Hockey Hall of Fame’s Elmer Ferguson Award, awarded to writers “who have brought honor to journalism and to hockey.” A native of Brooklyn, N.Y., and graduate of Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism, she has covered 18 Olympics.

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