Belgium will bet everything on attack at the Euro. Its defence is inexperienced

The golden generation, whose peak was the bronze at the 2018 World Championships, is gone. Belgium has gone from being the favourite for the Euros to being alongside Switzerland, Austria or Croatia. It can succeed, but it can no longer be expected to do so. What kind of squad will they present in Germany?

Already the last two big events have indicated a gradual quality decline. Eight finals at Euro 2021, then a year later the end of the group stage at the World Cup in Qatar. The atmosphere in the cabinet has not been ideal for a long time, which is why manager Domenico Tedesco decided to make a risky move.

Without the number one goalkeeper

Due to injury, he didn’t play a minute until May, yet the omission of Thibaut Courtois from the nomination is very unexpected. One of the best of the decade, he has jumped into four league games after recovering and hasn’t scored a goal.

However, it was Courtois who was often the reason for the bad atmosphere in the cabin, according to foreign media speculation. For a long time, things didn’t work out especially between him and Kevin De Bruyne, also because of unsettled accounts from his youth due to De Bruyne’s then girlfriend. The catcher will probably be Matz Sels from Nottingham.

The more forward, the better

While in the last decade the complete Belgian roster was scary, currently only the midfield and attack are of downright quality. The midfield isn’t just about De Bruyne, for example Amadou Onana played two decent seasons at Everton.

In attack, he commands the tank with the help of the fast youngsters of the upcoming generation. Romelu Lukaku will strike fear into just about every defender except David Zima, his physical disposition is still world class and the Red Devils rely on him.

At Manchester City, technician Jeremy Doku has adapted quickly to the pace of the Premier League, while Lois Openda is in charge at Leipzig. Leandro Trossard is again proving to be one of the best super-goals of the moment at Arsenal, plus he can play any position in the offensive line.

Anything but the Belgian defence

The concern of Belgian fans stems clearly from the quality of the defence. They used to be the stars of Tottenham, Barcelona and Manchester City, currently they are either inexperienced mediocre players or quality but with their best era behind them.

Jan Vertonghen is in the nomination more to pass on the experience that will be needed as the defence has no real leader. It’s hard to play without that, which is why I see it ending in the quarterfinals at the latest.

Quarter-finals

Source: UEFA, Belgian national football team