Balogun has become the biggest talking point of this World Cup, and after Belgium eliminated the USA in the Round of 16, both the striker and Red Devils boss Garcia addressed the controversy that had overshadowed the build-up to the match.
Balogun was sent off against Bosnia-Herzegovina, only for the suspension to be overturned following pressure from Donald Trump, allowing him to feature against Belgium. The decision sparked fierce criticism from multiple directions, and Balogun addressed the saga publicly for the first time after the final whistle.
"When you get a red card, the procedure is usually that you don't play the next match. When that decision is then overturned, that obviously creates debate," Balogun said.
"So it didn't really surprise me. But as a player, my job is just to go out on the pitch and focus on my own game. I'm disappointed that we didn't manage to win today."
He went on to stress that he had accepted both outcomes as they came.
"I accepted the decision when I got the red card, and I also accepted the decision when I was told I could play after all. There isn't really much more I can say about that matter. At the end of the day, Belgium were the best team today. They played clearly better than us," he said.
Belgium's Football Association had lodged multiple appeals before the match contesting Balogun's eligibility, arguing the decision breached FIFA regulations, with Trump's interventions with FIFA president Gianni Infantino only deepening the sense of injustice in the Belgian camp. In the end, Garcia's side chose to settle the matter on the pitch, suffocating the USA with their pressing, collective control and clinical finishing, with Charles De Ketelaere, Hans Vanaken and Romelu Lukaku all getting on the scoresheet. The win sends Belgium into a heavily anticipated quarter-final against Spain.
Garcia insisted afterwards that the Balogun saga had never been used as extra motivation for his squad.
"No, that wasn't necessary. I told the players that. Whatever the USA team does, it's none of our business. We wanted to press the Americans high and be proactive. We had a game plan and we stuck to it. We didn't want to sit back and get pressed. That's how we scored the first goal, with Raskin's high recovery. Same with the third goal, even if there was also a goalkeeping error. We played with a lot of control and desire," Garcia said.
He added that the Balogun situation had barely featured in his tactical planning.
"I didn't even bring it up. I told them only our team mattered. We flag the opposition's strengths and weaknesses but nothing more. I'm not a coach who adapts much to the opponent. I will never set up to play very defensively."
Garcia also took care to separate Balogun from the wider controversy that had surrounded him.
"He's the one who came to see me, he wanted to talk to me. He's got nothing to do with any of this. He's a player I particularly appreciate. I'd seen him at Monaco against PSG when I went to watch Wout Faes. Tonight, our centre-backs handled him perfectly, I had no doubts," Garcia said, in comments that stood in sharp contrast to the tension of the preceding days.