There was a moment late in Belgium’s win over Brazil on Friday when Eden Hazard led a break. He charged into the opposition half, turned back inside and, as runners went by him, taking defenders with them, space opened up for a pass out to the left to the substitute Youri Tielemans. There was an overlap, a chance of a third goal that would have finished the game. Hazard saw it. He tried to play it. But his legs, for once, did not obey. The ball set off in the right direction but with nothing like enough pace; Marcelo intercepted. Hazard had essentially been too exhausted to pass a ball 40 yards. Like the rest of the team, he was spent.

Romelu Lukaku gives Belgium clue to solving mystery of beating Brazil | Nick Ames Read more

If Brazil had found a late equaliser, there could only have been one winner in extra time. Belgium had given everything, including Hazard, who does not necessarily have a reputation for industry. That, and his slightly diffident personality, lay at the heart of his difficult relationship with José Mourinho at Chelsea. But here he ran until he could run no more.

Hazard has said that his model was always Ronaldinho: he wanted to do his tricks and play with a smile on his face. He watched the Brazilian and copied his moves. He works much harder than Ronaldinho ever did and often wears a frown of concentration rather than the broad grin of his idol, but still, the original lurks beneath the surface; he jokingly refers to Chelsea’s training ground as “Cobham-cabana”. And against Brazil, Hazard was exceptional, as all of Belgium’s front three were.

His job, in a sense, was simple. This was not the inside-forward role he has been occupying for Belgium and that he has played for Chelsea over the past two seasons. In Kazan, he started wide in a 4-3-3 but with a brief to cut infield into the spaces left when Kevin De Bruyne dropped deep from his false 9 position. Hazard was up against the one potential weak link in the Brazil side, the third-choice right‑back, Fagner. Mexico’s Carlos Vela had dominated him early on in the last 16 clash in Samara; Hazard treated him like a slightly cumbersome training cone. He succeeded with all of his first five dribbles.

Quick guide Why Belgium are the team to beat Show Hide 1) Tactically astute manager Roberto Martínez has often been accused of reckless naivety when it comes to tactics but the approach he took to beating Brazil – narrowing Belgium’s midfield and placing Romelu Lukaku in a wide-right role – shows he is smart as well as flexible. He will have a plan for France. 2) Four world-class players Belgium also beat Brazil because, quite simply, they have very good players, in particular their front three of Eden Hazard, Kevin De Bruyne and Lukaku, and – as he showed with a range of saves on Friday – Thibaut Courtois. In what is likely to be a tight semi-final, the goalkeeper could prove crucial. 3) Belief Belgium believe. That much could be taken from their celebrations after the final whistle in Kazan, as well from the manner they have celebrated the goals and wins throughout this tournament – with a sense of collective purpose and unity. That, more than anything, could help them become world champions.

After the match, Tite, the Brazil coach, retracted his earlier lament to God about all the injuries his side have suffered, but said this would have been a different game had Dani Alves not been ruled out before the tournament. It might have been a different game even if Danilo had been fit.

Fagner was exposed and unable to cope. Brazil’s switch to 4-4-2 at half-time meant Gabriel Jesus offered a measure of cover, but by then Belgium led 2-0. As Romelu Lukaku bullocked down one flank, overwhelming with Marouane Fellaini and Thomas Meunier a Brazilian left that proved too geared to attack, Hazard sliced away on the other side: two different threats, both released by Roberto Martínez’s brave tactical shift, both devastatingly effective.

It was a performance that could have long-term consequences. The situation at Chelsea is farcical. Antonio Conte may be sacked next week, or he may still turn up for work, the world’s most implausible George Costanza, to take training when the first wave of players return for pre‑season on Monday.

Play Video 0:41 Belgium fans celebrate as Brazilians are left in tears by World Cup defeat – video

There has been talk for years about Real Madrid possibly making a move for Hazard, and it has grown louder of late, while Hazard notably did not play down talk of a transfer after the FA Cup final in May.

Although it is hard ever to be sure what is posturing, Cristiano Ronaldo’s representatives are at least in some sort of negotiations with Juventus. If the vacancy does not open up this summer, it will sooner rather than later. Florentino Pérez, the Madrid president, is often swayed by World Cups. After Mesut Özil in 2010 and James Rodríguez in 2014, could Hazard be his big post-tournament splurge this year?

Quick guide France v Belgium: five memorable matches Show Hide France have faced Belgium 73 times, winning 24 and losing 30

7 June 2015 France 3 Belgium 4 Marouane Fellaini proved too hot for France to handle a year out from their hosting of Euro 2016, with two goals before half-time at the Stade de France, before Radja Nainggolan and Eden Hazard added two more after the break. It was France’s second defeat since the 2014 World Cup, and proved a portentous sign before their loss to Portugal in the final at Saint‑Denis a little over 12 months later. 27 May 1998 Belgium 0 France 1 The last time the sides met competitively was in the King Hassan II Cup in Casablanca as preparation for the World Cup later that year. A single second‑half goal from Zinedine Zidane was enough to separate them, with France going on to 'win’ a mini-league also including Morocco and Glenn Hoddle’s England, who drew 0-0 with Belgium before losing on penalties. 28 June 1986 Belgium 2 France 4 (aet) France won the battle for pride in Puebla at the Mexico World Cup, claiming third place with two goals in extra time after the 90 minutes ended 2-2. Jan Ceulemans had given Belgium the lead, before Jean-Marc Ferreri and Jean-Pierre Papin hit back, with Nico Claesen levelling things. Goals from Bernard Genghini and Manuel Amoros condemned Belgium to fourth place after both sides had lost their respective semi-finals 2-0. 16 June 1984 France 5 Belgium 0 With eight teams competing in France at the 1984 European Championship, the hosts were in impressive form on their way to a first major international title. Both sides had won their opening games – Belgium 2-0 against Yugoslavia, the hosts 1-0 against Denmark – but a hat-trick from Michel Platini and one each from Alain Giresse and Luis Fernández made for a miserable night for the Belgians in Nantes. 5 June 1938 France 3 Belgium 1 The first major tournament match, indeed the first non-friendly, between the sides came in France at the last World Cup held before the second world war – and the final one without a group stage. The host nation’s win in their opening game, courtesy of a first-minute goal from Émile Veinante and a double from Jean Nicolas, set up a quarter-final meeting with eventual champions, Italy, who won 3-1 in Paris.

Certainly if this were a head-to-head audition against Neymar – football matches very rarely are these days, except when impressionable presidents are involved – there was only one winner.

Neymar increasingly feels a victim of his own celebrity, his need to be the star in the biopic of his own life. His best football came at Barcelona, when the weight of Lionel Messi, Luis Suárez and the entire post-Cruyffian machine forced a measure of submission to the collective.

Roberto Martínez: ‘My players had that look in their eyes that they could win’ Read more

Without that, at Paris Saint-Germain and with Brazil, his solipsism runs unchecked – as it would if you had been told since you were a child that you were the new Pelé. Hours after the final whistle, he wandered alone around the car park outside the Kazan Arena, either unable to find the Brazil bus or reluctant to board it, a poignant figure struggling under the toxic combination of his own ego and his country’s expectations.

Hazard is very different, quieter, more introverted, less self-confident. He will not illuminate a room with a smile. He will not send hordes of impressionable teenagers clutching the latest snap of their hero to the hairdressers. He may not relish the circus that Madrid so often becomes.

But he will follow a tactical plan, he will not overelaborate and he will devastate a full-back who gives him half a chance. In a post-Ronaldo world, Hazard may be just the non-celebrity Real Madrid need. Whatever else he is, he is a supremely skilful and effective footballer.