Belgium (National Football)

Belgium have suffered a big blow ahead of the UEFA Euro 2016 quarter-final clash with Wales, as star defender Jan Vertonghen will miss the rest of the tournament after he injured his ankle in training, per Kristof Terreur of Het Laatste Nieuws. Vertonghen will miss six to eight weeks as a result, according to ESPN FC's John Chapman.

Continue for updates.

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Vertonghen Releases Statement Following Injury Announcement

Thursday, June 30

Gutted to say that my Euros is over. Good luck to my teammates for the rest of the competition 🇧🇪

— Jan Vertonghen (@JanVertonghen) June 30, 2016

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Vertonghen Adds to Belgium's Defensive Woes

The Red Devils lost Vincent Kompany and Nicolas Lombaerts before the start of the tournament, while Thomas Vermaelen was booked in the 4-0 win against Hungary and will be suspended for the clash with Wales.

Manager Marc Wilmots already faced a dilemma ahead of the match with Wales thanks to his depleted options in defence, as he had to choose between moving Vertonghen to centre-back, where he could partner with Spurs team-mate Toby Alderweireld, or keeping him at left-back and introducing Manchester City's Jason Denayer to the starting XI.

Following this latest defensive setback, Denayer is now expected to come into the starting XI, while KV Oostende's Jordan Lukaku will likely start at left-back. Lukaku has limited experience at international level, and Denayer has shown flashes of his talent but was badly exposed in the friendly against Norway.

Wales forward Gareth Bale has been one of the most in-form attackers of the tournament so far, and he will relish going up against a Belgium defence missing four key members.

Midfielders Radja Nainggolan and Axel Witsel will now be tasked with keeping an eye on the Real Madrid man, which should hamper the Red Devils' production further up the pitch.

After the shock of the opening defeat to Italy, a sense of calm has returned to Belgium. They’ve won their last three games, scoring eight without reply, and the discontent in the squad—the vague threat of mutiny—seems to have receded. There is nothing, after all, quite so good for team spirit as winning.

As they approach Friday’s semi-final against Wales, though, certain doubts remain. 

It can never be a bad thing to be the leading scorers in the tournament, but context is required. 

Three of their eight goals came against a Republic of Ireland side producing its worst performance of the tournament, arguably its worst under Martin O’Neill—scratchy, disengaged and fearful.

A 1-0 win over Sweden is no great success; this was a stubborn side that was so limited going forward it didn’t manage its first shot on target until the fifth minute of the third game.

And while the demolition of Hungary was ostensibly impressive, it was against a team that had lost Laszlo Kleinheisler in the warm-up; this was not only a blow in itself, it disrupted the meticulous planning that had characterised Bernd Storck’s side.

But winning is good. Perhaps Belgium head coach Marc Wilmots has suddenly got the balance right and found a way of fitting his stars together.

While some of the criticism has begun to abate, none of those performances were sufficient in themselves to overturn the suspicion that first emerged at the 2014 World Cup that, under Wilmots, this side is rather less than the sum of its parts.

Eden Hazard, who has so regularly disappointed for Belgium, at least found form against Hungary, scoring a dazzling goal and laying on an assist for Michy Batshuayi. There remain questions though as to whether he and Kevin De Bruyne, who has probably been Belgium’s best creative player in the group stage, can play together.

The tendency is for one or other to take the lead, which perhaps isn’t the worst position to be in, but Belgium awaits the moment when they explode together.

Most take-ons completed so far at #EURO2016:

Eden Hazard (22) #BEL
Gareth Bale (15) #WAL
Julian Draxler (12) #GER pic.twitter.com/0TgZ7Z1Agq

— Squawka Football (@Squawka) June 28, 2016

Still, there were signs of a fluency against Hungary, at least in the latter stages as their opponents tired, and that perhaps is the most encouraging aspect for Wilmots.

Perhaps finally there is a balance in the team—and balance for a national-team manager is the hardest thing to achieve. But questions remain.

For all the criticism Wilmots has received, one of the biggest issues is something he can do nothing about: Belgium lack high-class full-backs.

Before the injuries to Vincent Kompany and Nicolas Lombaerts, Belgium would have lined up with Jan Vertonghen and Toby Alderweireld, the Premier League’s best central-defensive partnership last season, at full-back. As it is, Alderweireld has moved into the middle with Vertonghen at left-back and Thomas Meunier on the right.

Meunier is in the midst of completing his move from Club Brugge to Paris Saint-Germain this week, which has been another concern for this Belgium side. Batshuayi has been given time off for his Chelsea medical, while Radja Nainggolan is asked almost every day about his future.

The dearth of full-backs, inevitably, has prompted a lack of fluency. The capacity to attack down the flank from deep is a key part of modern football. They’re needed to break up rigid lines, to ensure that defence and midfield are integrated, to offer overlaps when wide forwards, such as Hazard, cut infield.

However, that is not Vertonghen’s game. In four games, he has completed just two crosses. In three matches, Meunier has completed just one. That, in theory, gives Belgium a solid base, but it heightens the danger of their team becoming broken between the front half and the back half, which was precisely the flaw upon which Italy seized so ruthlessly.

That’s why the position at the back of midfield becomes so vital. If the full-backs cannot push on, then the holding midfielders have a crucial role in linking the two halves of the team.

The pairing of Nainggolan and Axel Witsel, unconvincing against Italy, has improved as the tournament has gone on—following a brief experiment with Mousa Dembele alongside Witsel in the Ireland game.

A more hands-on manager—somebody like Antonio Conte—would work incessantly on that, practising drills to ensure the back four was always protected. Wilmots’ way, though, is to leave the players to improvise.

There is a theory that because so many of Belgium’s players have developed under meticulous controlling coaches such as Diego Simeone, Andre Villas-Boas, Mauricio Pochettino and Jose Mourinho they are unused to Wilmots’ more laissez-faire approach.

Only De Bruyne is really used to improvising, which is why he has tended to be Belgium’s most effective player under Wilmots.

No player has created more chances at #EURO2016 than Kevin De Bruyne (22).

Creative masterclass. pic.twitter.com/J64Q65HR6e

— Squawka Football (@Squawka) June 28, 2016

Hazard, used to shuttling up and down the flank at Chelsea, protecting his full-back and covering for overlaps, is given almost no defensive responsibility. That may be something he relishes, but it’s almost as though he struggled to come to terms with the freedom until the Hungary game.

The other defensive issue facing Belgium against Wales is the suspension of Thomas Vermaelen, meaning they are without three front-line central defenders. Jason Denayer, who spent last season on loan at Galatasaray from Manchester City, looks likely to step in.

Perhaps Wilmots’ approach relaxes the players but the problem is that when it goes wrong, it leaves him very open to criticism.

Before the Italy game, he played a practice game between the first XI and the other players, who were arranged in a 3-5-2 to mimic Italy’s formation. The first team lost 4-0. The next day, they played another 11 vs. 11 practice. This time the reserves were given no tactical instruction.

Even allowing for the fact that it’s not especially uncommon for reserve sides to beat the putative first team in practice games, that seems mystifying, as though Wilmots decided the confidence of his players was of more value than working on tactical deficiencies.

He was heavily criticised in the Belgian press, most notably by former Sheffield Wednesday striker Marc Degryse in Het Laatste Nieuws.

Brushing aside lesser teams is all very well—and a part of the game that has eluded certain others at this tournament—but winning a tournament means beating the best.

Memories of the defeat to Italy linger. Wales too favour a back three and play counter-attacking football. Belgium’s players individually are better, but the Welsh have a clear and effective tactical structure particularly against teams who come at them.

This quarter-final will be a test of how far Belgium have progressed over the tournament but even if they get through it, it doesn’t necessarily mean the problems of the opening game have been solved.

The draw has been relatively kind to Belgium, and the signs of the past 10 days are encouraging, but there are still major questions to answer about the coherence of this side and Wilmots’ capacity to answer them. Wales will only be the start of that.

All information obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted.

Belgian football is thriving and has lifted the mood of a nation. A small country with a population of only 11.2 million heads into Sunday's Euro 2016 round-of-16 match with Hungary as fourth favourites to win the tournament.

The Red Devils have unified and helped a new word come into vogue: "Belgitude" is a confluence between Belgium and attitude, exemplifying the surrealistic desire for a homogeneous country.

Michel Sablon is responsible for much of the renewed 90-minute patriotism: In the early 2000s, the clairvoyant technical director uprooted Belgian football's prolonged state of indolence and inertia with a revolution based on a 4-3-3 formation, individual player development and institutional change.

Sablon re-engineered the Belgian game.

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Sablon shivered despite the tropical temperatures in the stands of the King Baudouin Stadium in Brussels. Sweat trickled down his face.

Belgium were playing Turkey in their Euro 2000 group-phase decider. They had to win and imposed a game of audacious velocity in the opening exchanges in order to strangle their opponents. Both strikers, Luc Nilis and Emile Mpenza, probed and poked but lacked a cutting edge. The Turks sequestered Marc Wilmots, who had so excelled in the previous group games against both Sweden and Italy, in midfield.

For the better part of the 90 minutes, Belgium's game was an ungainly lateral stasis: a rigid organization in a 4-4-2 formation, but without any resourcefulness in the final third. They lacked skill, intelligence and cohesion. Goalkeeper Filip de Wilde's howler and Hakan Sukur's goalscoring nous wrecked Belgium's party.

Sablon cringed. Belgium's textbook capitulation was a repeat performance of the 1998 World Cup: The team had played to its limitations in a gritty demonstration of pragmatism and toil, but ultimately its players were, at best, blue collar. They didn't belong in elite football.

"The match [against Turkey] was a complete flop," Sablon told Bleacher Report. "The way Belgium had been eliminated was simply not acceptable. The team hit rock bottom. There was a quality vacuum, and something needed to be done."

Michel D'Hooghe, then president of the Belgian FA and long-standing FIFA executive committee member, agreed. His achievement of bringing the European Championship to Belgium as co-hosts had rebounded: Euro 2000 had magnified Belgium's failing football culture, shackled by partisan interests and thwarted by the lack of an overarching vision.

He asked Sablon to tailor the future.

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Sablon was a modest player in the 1970s with Brussels-based club Merchtem and had been Belgium’s assistant coach at the World Cups in Mexico in 1986, Italy in 1990 and the United States in 1994. He set out to meticulously deconstruct the domestic game and tasked the universities of Leuven, Ghent, Louvain-la-Neuve and Liege to screen and map out football's landscape with particular regard to youth development.

"Numbers tell the tale," says Sablon.

He challenged professor Werner Helsen of KU Leuven's department of Movement Control and Neuroplasticity to define the best form of play. Helsen and six students analysed 1,500 hours of game footage, focusing on the joints of the game—short passes, the number of touches of every player, buildup and the long ball.

"The minimum trajectory for an aspiring top player is 10,000 hours," says Helsen. "We looked at multiple game actions. The players wore heart-rate monitors to check the intensity levels of different game forms. At the time, those forms had not been adjusted to the motor and physical movements of children."

Helsen's facts and findings required further exegesis. After much rumination, a group of task forces and committees of club representatives and coaches, chaired by Sablon, rubber-stamped the 4-3-3 formation as the new way forward.

In the tapestry of clubs, top sport schools and national youth teams, Sablon stressed the importance of the individual player. The technical director and a small group of loyal zealots, including Bob Browaeys, Eric Abrams, Marc Van Geersom and Kris Van Der Haegen, became flag-bearers. They carried their dogma to the clubs and interested parties in the Flemish and Walloon constituency, so often an unfettered quagmire of provincialism and ineptitude.

Their truism was straightforward: Players have individual positions and characteristics but need empowerment within the playing system. A team must be informed by the interchangeability of things; attackers defend and defenders attack. Players need to seek out spatial freedom to roam in and dictate the play from within that bubble.

In a way, Sablon and his inner circle, inspired by Ajax, the Netherlands and Spain, were disciples of the late Johan Cruyff. Yet the adoption of 4-3-3 was not a veiled venture to modernize the basic tenets of Total Football, but merely a contemplated resolution to employ the best modern formation, both for purposes of player development and results-oriented progress.

They renounced 4-4-2 and, with it, much of mainstream Belgian football tactics.

"4-3-3 was paramount in honing the player of the future," highlights Sablon. "Assess the different playing systems and 4-3-3 will turn out to be most efficient, because you have a flat four at the back, defensive and offensive triangles in the midfield, a striker and two wingers, for whom dribbling past the opponent is of pivotal importance."

"Belgium was playing outdated and outmoded football," says Browaeys, a goalkeeper for KSV Waregem in the 1980s and Belgium's bronze medal-winning coach at the 2015 FIFA U17 World Cup. "With a 4-4-2 or 3-5-2 you predominantly produce workers and runners."

In their vision 4-3-3 was inextricably intertwined with zonal football—a game concept in and out of ball possession to dominate the opponent in the zone between the goal and the ball, and in the final third, according to the KBVB's training manual.

Apart from unbridled triangulation, the advantages of 4-3-3 in zone are manifold: quick transition, shared collective responsibility and a fair distribution of physical exertions.

"We were a bit visionary," says Browaeys. "4-3-3 meets all requirements to develop players who excel in ball circulation and individual actions. If youth players adopt a libero and man-marking, what does it imply tactically? You just follow your direct opponent the whole game; whereas, if you play in zones, you have to think, you have to position yourself in relation to your opponent and the situation of the game."

Backed by a big set of scientific data, Sablon sought to align visions to implement his preferred formation with small-sided games at both the clubs and the national youth teams.

"In games of 11 vs. 11, young players would touch the ball twice in 90 minutes," explains Sablon. Hans Galje at Club Brugge, Roland Breugelmans at KRC Genk, the late Dominique D'Onofrio at Standard Liege and Jean Kindermans at RSC Anderlecht helped at club level: five vs. five with a single diamond, eight vs. eight with a double diamond and eventually 11 vs. 11 with fixed numbers.

In the national curriculum, players were to obtain the technical and tactical basics as well as team tactics. Ball circulation was crucial: goal-kicks, direct free-kicks and throw-ins (replaced by a kick-in) were dispensed with to stimulate buildup play.

To canvass and recruit new talent, Sablon devised a straightforward six-point competence model.

"When I scout there are six characteristics that matter: winning mentality, emotional stability, personality, explosiveness, insight in the game and ball and body control," explains Abrams, who coached Belgium's U17 national team for much of the last decade. He is now the technical director of Football Australia.

"The winning mentality is the paramount criterion—does the player have the attitude to improve?" says Abrams. "A player can be outrageously talented, but he won't make it to the elite without that characteristic. He may not even be the best player of the team. It's all about the potential and long term, not the match performance."

"I was one of the first to consider [Kevin] De Bruyne a fantastic player," recalls Sablon. “At the age of 16, he read the game three times faster than the rest. [Eden] Hazard moved from Tubize to Lille. His flashes of brilliance were not yet supported by a strong physical condition and mental resilience, but if he stuck at it, he was predestined."

Both De Bruyne and Hazard are "conflict players," according to Sablon, because they wriggle with a balance between team play and individual play. He wanted his new recruits to combine a holistic approach with an individualistic attitude. Cognitive understanding of the game and decision-making under pressure were part of their DNA.

"A player has to function in a team, but always from an individualistic point of view," emphasizes Browaeys.

"You have to give De Bruyne and Hazard more leeway, because they are icons who need to find a balance between team service [and individual play]," says Sablon. "You don't have to ask Hazard to defend. He defended positionally under [Jose] Mourinho and did so reasonably, but he matters mostly when in possession.

"Kevin De Bruyne is completely different: His vision is simply unbelievable. He can pass left and right, while deceiving everyone, except the intended recipient, who'll receive the ball at the right moment, at the right height and with the right speed."

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In 2007, Hazard and Christian Benteke played with the Diablotins at the U17 European Championship. They progressed to the semi-finals and suffered a heart-breaking 7-6 defeat on penalties against Spain.

A year later, Belgium U23 fielded Vincent Kompany, Thomas Vermaelen, Marouane Fellaini, Jan Vertonghen and Mousa Dembele and reached the bronze-medal match at the Beijing Olympic Games.

Here was a group of eclectic players, with roots all over Africa, with a sense of self-confidence and poise: a newfound generation, moulded and fine-tuned by Sablon—and the complete antipode of their predecessors. They showed an aptitude hitherto unseen in Belgium: swiftness and swagger in both skills and execution, but with an overarching sangfroid. They encompassed the main characteristic of Belgian national youth teams—ball possession, if possible up to a quixotic 100 per cent.

At youth level, Belgium's imposing style slants toward the Germanic school of play: high pressure when out of possession, more vertigo when in possession. At senior level, the Red Devils do embody their own school, neither Germanic nor Southern, but marked by the functionality of midfield cog and ball artist De Bruyne and by the many intricacies and infiltrations of Hazard.

Sablon often exchanged ideas with Matthias Sammer. "Germany also reconfigured their game, and so did Switzerland," says Sablon. "Our style does tilt towards German football, but with [Divock] Origi and Hazard, Belgium produced a distinct kind of player."

Belgium's golden generation must deliver in France—in the past the Red Devils have been accused of personifying a "Louis Vuitton" generation of spoilt brats in a gilt-edged bubble of inflated salaries and PlayStation intellectualism.

They woefully underperformed by not qualifying for both the 2010 World Cup and Euro 2012. At the last World Cup, the much-heralded Red Devils progressed to the quarter-finals but failed to enchant, with the exception of 120 minutes of high-charged football against the United States.

"Everyone is talking about a golden generation, but until today we haven't won anything," cautions Axel Witsel, who plays for Zenit St Petersburg in Russia.

Witsel was a protagonist in Belgium's meek quarter-final defeat against Argentina in Brazil. He dropped deep, allowing both Fellaini and De Bruyne to exploit the space in front of him. The defensive duo of Kompany and Daniel Van Buyten also charged forward. The liberal approach backfired: Gonzalo Higuain scored after eight minutes, and Argentina thereafter never looked like relinquishing the lead. Lionel Messi roamed around freely and dictated the pace.

In the last quarter of the game, Belgium retained possession again, courtesy of their talented bench with Romelu Lukaku, Dries Mertens and Nacer Chadli as substitutes, but they didn't deliver an end product.

That's a conundrum coach Wilmots has not been always able to address. Belgium suffered just a single defeat away to Wales in the qualifiers, but the displays were often mundane. They still struggle against opponents who sit deep in block, as highlighted by Italy in their opening match of the Euro 2016 finals.

Wilmots reacted by making De Bruyne the undisputed pivot of the team—not Hazard—but that tactical alteration may count for little. Knockout football is capricious—one poor game, and once again, Belgium will be on their way out.

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Sablon has travelled to France to observe, and keenly support, Belgium. Like Browaeys and Abrams, he timidly yearns for success—a long run into July, possibly an improvement of Belgium's Euro 1980 achievement.

A disappointing result would not be catastrophic: Systems and players are evanescent, but a methodology is not, more so when constantly in search of the next great prodigy, a Kevin De Bruyne 2.0.

"Which qualities does a 15-year-old player need to possess today to play the game in a decade's time?" asks Abrams. "Every player will have to be a decision-maker. A central defender must not only defend and recover possession, but also pass and attack. Today, at top clubs, strikers are the first defenders. You always need to define the player profile of the future."

"You have to innovate or you will regress like the Netherlands," says Sablon. "But this generation is simply exceptional. They are among the favorites to win Euro 2016. It's now or never and they know it."

All quotes gathered firsthand unless otherwise stated.

Under the teeming skies of Lyon, Belgium’s fans showed up, and they showed up in force. The sea of red spread halfway around the stands was the most arresting sight in Parc Olympique Lyonnais on Monday night as Euro 2016 kicked off for the gastronomical capital of France.

After days in which the headlines have been dominated by violence and disorder, Les Diables Rouges charmed the locals in the city centre before coming together in perfect choreography in Decines, on the outskirts. They even applauded "Il Canto degli Italiani," the opposition’s anthem.

If only their team had been as well organised. Belgium have the players to be one of the favourites for the tournament but, it increasingly seems, they do not have the coach to make it count. The game itself was a thriller, but in the battle of the coaches, it was victory by knockout for Antonio Conte against Marc Wilmots. Noted tactical blogger 11 Tegen 11 perhaps put it best, in this tweet:

If ever a match could convince people that tactics / the manager matters, it was this one.
The utterly unpreparedness of Belgium.

— 11tegen11 (@11tegen11) June 13, 2016

First, let’s be clear—Italy were excellent. It wasn’t just the celebrated BBC of Andrea Barzagli, Leonardo Bonucci and Giorgio Chiellini who stifled Belgium. Conte’s wing-backs, Andrea Candreva (the man of the match from this seat) and Matteo Darmian, got through plenty of work down their respective flanks—but most importantly covered at the drop of the hat. The instant that Italy lost the ball, their back three became five.

When trouble threatened to brew, Chelsea’s next coach reacted quickly. Conte hooked Darmian after Les Diables Rouges twice made menacing breaks down his side, replacing him with fresh legs in the shape of Mattia De Sciglio. All in all, Italy made light of the sort of personnel challenges that led many commentators to call it the weakest Azzurri squad in at least a generation.

The concerns started in a midfield shorn of Claudio Marchisio and the pivotal Marco Verratti. The trio in situ hardly inspired, but it worked well and defended tirelessly in front of the back three/five. Daniele De Rossi has seen better days, but he fought like a tiger as the match went on. Marco Parolo never stopped running.

It’s hard to take in the fact that the relatively unheralded Emanuele Giaccherini has a branded case to his mobile phone, decked with a caricature of himself under the legend "EG17," a nod to his shirt number with Bologna. Nobody was laughing at the end of the match, after his driven display. He capped his performance with a superbly taken opening goal, after he instantly controlled and smartly dispatched Bonucci’s delicious pass over the compromised Toby Alderweireld.

Another unfancied workhorse, Graziano Pelle, capped it all off at the end from Candreva’s pass. Pelle ended the season in decent enough form for Southampton, but he wouldn’t have been most people’s ideal.

Beside him, Eder had scored one goal in 14 Serie A matches (eight starts) since joining Inter in January, but he worked the Belgian defence hard. It had seemed tough to justify keeping in-form attacking talent like Lorenzo Insigne and the revived Stephan El Shaarawy on the bench in favour of this duo, but they earned their corn.

Let’s not got too swept away by Conte’s tactical mastery, though. Italy’s was, for the most part, a triumph of perspiration (and perception) over inspiration. The players’ joyous celebrations at the end (of just the first group match, remember) showed how much they’d put in, and the feeling of vindication after they were so extensively doubted.

Yet Belgium’s, and Wilmots’, culpability is inescapable. Alderweireld told this column after the game that they “had some difficulties with the tactics of Italy.” It was as if the way Conte’s team played was a surprise, when it shouldn’t have been.

First off, Wilmots could have done with taking a leaf from Conte’s book, in taking advantage of a successful club defensive partnership in his midst. It’s a simple but effective way of doing things at international level, but whereas Italy used Juve’s defence, Belgium decided to pass on faithfully reprising Tottenham Hotspur’s.

Thomas Vermaelen started in central defence, with Alderweireld’s Spurs partner Jan Vertonghen farmed out to his habitual national-team position of left-back. It is perhaps a leap to blame Alderweireld’s error for the Giaccherini goal on that defensive reshuffle, but it can’t have helped.

Drawn on how he would organise the back line in the pre-match press conference, Wilmots had been coy. “It’s a question that I can’t answer,” he told this column, “and that I don’t want to answer, because I’m not giving out the composition of the team. That they (Alderweireld and Vertonghen) are well respected in England, I can well understand that. I often watch them. But you know they’ve played as right and left full-backs (for us) for the last four years, and have made up part of one of the best defences in Europe. We’ve had to re-adjust a little bit, but you’ll have the response tomorrow.”

And we did. The cloak-and-dagger approach gave way to the same defensive concerns so apparent in the recent friendly win in Switzerland.

Vermaelen is a strange call. Loyalty is one thing, but the former Arsenal defender has started seven La Liga games for Barcelona since joining in the summer of 2014. So perhaps Belgium don’t have full-backs of the equivalent class of their centre-backs, but is Jordan Lukaku not good enough to make the cut? Or if Vermaelen must be included, why can’t he play at full-back (as he often has), leaving the Tottenham duo intact in the centre?

Possibly still more contentious was the inclusion of Marouane Fellaini in midfield, with Wilmots deciding muscle was needed in the centre rather than letting Kevin De Bruyne prompt from there. The first clear chance of the game offered brief backing of this plan, with Gigi Buffon diving smartly to parry when Radja Nainggolan benefitted from the sort of second-ball action that Fellaini is so adept at creating.

Yet this ultimately proved indicative of Belgium’s first-half problems, as they were largely limited to efforts from outside the area. It also arguably underlined that Belgium are playing exactly the sort of football from which their players’ intrinsic quality should steer them away. Fellaini’s inclusion left Kevin De Bruyne isolated and frustrated way out right, and he was ineffective.

The morning-after frustration will be compounded by the knowledge that Italy were far from perfect and had moments of malleability, particularly in the second half. “We came back, and we had chances,” Axel Witsel rightly pointed out after the game—notably when the off-colour Romelu Lukaku skewed wide after a quick break from De Bruyne and Eden Hazard, while substitute Divock Origi missed a pair of free headers.

Hazard became more influential as the game went on, but he did that as he roamed where he liked. The closing stages were a bun fight. Alderweireld, the regular first-choice right-back, was playing as an auxiliary right-winger (with Yannick Carrasco by now at his side) in the closing stages as Belgium threw the kitchen sink at Italy.

Pelle’s second may have been extensively celebrated—half the Italian delegation seemed to end up on the pitch—but was almost anecdotal. The two glorious chances he missed earlier (one first half, once second) could have been far more costly had Belgium taken their chances, and that’s worth remembering.

Witsel had the final word. “Italy were more intelligent, experienced and clinical than us,” the Zenit midfielder said. Opening statements rarely come as blunt and damning as that. If Wilmots is to prove he can lead Belgium towards fulfilling their potential, there needs to be an emphatic response against the Republic of Ireland on Friday.

Belgium have named Liverpool’s Divock Origi and Barcelona defender Thomas Vermaelen in their squad for the UEFA European Championship this summer.

Manager Marc Wilmots confirmed 24 players on Thursday, a figure that’ll be cut to 23 before the tournament begins. Here’s the list, per the team’s official Twitter feed:

OFFICIAL | This is our @UEFAEURO squad list !! #TousenFrance #Euro2016 pic.twitter.com/8l6bOmDttD

— Belgian Red Devils (@BelRedDevils) May 12, 2016

Origi has been sidelined since mid-April with an ankle injury picked up in Liverpool's 4-0 win over Everton. Vermaelen is a veteran of the Belgium national team but has started only six games for Barcelona in La Liga this season.

The most notable omission from the group is skipper Vincent Kompany, with the Manchester City defender set to miss the tournament with an injury.

Wilmots, as reported by Het Laatste Nieuws’ Kristof Terreur, confirmed Chelsea’s Eden Hazard will lead the side out in France.

Per Terreur, the manager also revealed that he views Jason Denayer, who has been on loan at Galatasaray from City this season, as the man who can fill Kompany’s spot:

Marc Wilmots: "I consider Jason Denayer as Vincent Kompany's replacement." #THFC #MCFC pic.twitter.com/mQ3wyso6Bm

— Kristof Terreur (@kristofterreur) May 12, 2016

Although their inspirational leader is out of the squad, there is a lot of excitement when it comes to these players and what they could potentially achieve this summer.

Belgium are in a tough pool, though, as they’ll face Italy, the Republic of Ireland and Sweden in the group stages in France.

With the experience of a World Cup under their belt, Wilmots will be hoping to see a little more from his players, who, individually, are enough to match any side in the competition.

Kompany’s injury may not be quite so catastrophic either. It means the manager will potentially be able to use Tottenham Hotspur’s star centre-back duo of Toby Alderweireld—who has played right-back for the national team previously—and Jan Vertonghen at the base of his side.

WhoScored.com summed up just how influential Alderweireld has been for Spurs this season:

Toby Alderweireld: Only Williams (314) & Cook (287) have made more clearances in the PL this season than @AlderweireldTob (268)

— WhoScored (@WhoScored) May 2, 2016

In midfield, Wilmots has a lot of powerful players to chose from in Mousa Dembele, Marouane Fellaini, Radja Nainggolan and Axel Witsel. They’ll likely provide a foundation upon which the attacking stars in this team, of which there are many, can flourish.

Romelu Lukaku may have tailed off lately, but he has enjoyed a brilliant season with Everton in the main, while Yannick Ferreira Carrasco has made significant improvements under Diego Simeone at Atletico Madrid. Hazard and City playmaker Kevin De Bruyne are the two jewels in this setup, though.

As Squawka Football noted, they’re two players who are extremely creative with the ball at their feet:

Premier League chances created this season:

K.De Bruyne (75)
E.Hazard (63)
M.Dembele (28)
M.Fellaini (11) https://t.co/OQ1JaxEGrC

— Squawka (@Squawka) May 12, 2016

It’s going to be a test for Hazard. There have been signs in recent matches that he’s a player over the slump that has gripped him for the majority of this campaign, and he has captained the national team before. But doing so at a major tournament, in the absence of Kompany, with so much pressure resting on him is a big responsibility.

Belgium have the talent to win this competition should everything align, with quality options and strength in depth throughout Wilmots’ squad.

If Hazard relishes the captaincy and De Bruyne brings his Manchester City form to France, they will be tough to stop.

Belgium's national team has decided to move its upcoming international friendly against Portugal to Leiria in the wake of Tuesday's attacks in Brussels. 

As reported by the team's official website, the city of Brussels asked the Red Devils to cancel the match for security reasons.

Belgium's national team have cancelled their Tuesday training session following a series of explosions at Brussels Airport and the Maalbeek metro station in the centre of the Belgian city. 

According to French news agency AFP, at least 21 people were killed in the blasts, prompting the Belgium national side to pay their respects:

#tousensemble, our thoughts are with the victims. Football is not important today. Training cancelled.

— Belgian Red Devils (@BelRedDevils) March 22, 2016

Tottenham Hotspur's Jan Vertonghen tweeted about the tragedy:

Can't believe I'm reading these things again...

— Jan Vertonghen (@JanVertonghen) March 22, 2016

Belgium are scheduled to play a friendly match against Portugal in Brussels on March 29.

Their last scheduled friendly, against Spain back in November, was cancelled in the wake of the coordinated Paris terror attacks that saw 130 people killed, per the Guardian.

One of the main suspects in those attacks, Belgian-born Salah Abdeslam, was arrested in Brussels last week, per BBC News.

Norwich City's Dieumerci Mbokani was at the airport at the time of the explosions on Tuesday and was confirmed to be "unharmed but shaken" in a statement from the East Anglia club.

Belgium and Manchester United winger Adnan Januzaj posted a message of shock and support on Twitter:

Horrible to see what is going on in Brussels 🙏🇧🇪 #Zaventem

— Adnan Januzaj (@adnanjanuzaj) March 22, 2016

Per BBC News, two explosions occurred soon after 8 a.m. local time at Brussels' Zaventem airport, and the metro station was hit an hour later.

The terror threat in the country has been raised to its highest possible level, per CNN:

BREAKING: The threat level in Belgium has been raised to its highest level of four. Live: https://t.co/YHtnSRagXy https://t.co/m4zwdB953E

— CNN (@CNN) March 22, 2016

The match with Portugal is part of Belgium's preparations for the summer's Euro 2016 tournament in France.

However, thoughts of the game and the summer will likely be far from the Belgium players' minds after the tragic events on Tuesday in the nation's capital.

Proud to present: our new @adidasFootball kit 2016/2017!! #TousEnFrance #BeTheDifference pic.twitter.com/uGnwiBL4OH

— Belgian Red Devils (@BelRedDevils) November 9, 2015

Hungry for glory on Europe's biggest stage.
The @BelRedDevils home kit.
Ready for #EURO2016. #BeTheDifference pic.twitter.com/2bLVErbhbK

— adidas Football (@adidasfootball) November 9, 2015

Belgium are ready for Euro 2016.

Often seen as dangerous underdogs at major tournaments, the Red Devils are now among the favourites after being ranked No. 1 in FIFA's latest world rankings.

And they'll make the trip to France next summer in a tasty new kit. Their official Twitter account released an image of five players wearing the jersey. Adidas also tweeted a standalone photo of the shirt.

Some close-ups of our new kit! #TousEnFrance #BeTheDifference pic.twitter.com/6wQaD4Zc5n

— Belgian Red Devils (@BelRedDevils) November 9, 2015

Whatever happens to Belgium next year, Marc Wilmots' side will be doing it in style if this kit is anything to go by.

Not long after, Belgium revealed the look they'll wear while not in their home red, and similarly, it's quite classy. 

This is our new @adidasfootball 2016/ 2017 second kit. https://t.co/TypSuKC25M #TousEnFrance #BeTheDifference pic.twitter.com/ItwH1u3wxt

— Belgian Red Devils (@BelRedDevils) November 12, 2015

[Twitter]

Belgium travelled to Andorra as strong favourites to seal their place at UEFA Euro 2016.

They waited 19 minutes to break the deadlock as Radja Nainggolan put them ahead with a brilliant long-range strike.

Belle frappe de Nainggolan au milieu du but qui prend à contre-pied le gardien andorran placé au milieu des cages. https://t.co/44NYa55Os0

— WinamaxSport (@WinamaxSport) October 10, 2015

Shortly before half-time, one became two, as Kevin De Bruyne converted an inch-perfect free-kick via the left hand post.

he just can't stop scoring https://t.co/55qOYN3ESM

— Moe (@KDB_fan) October 10, 2015

The home side got one back shortly after half-time, Ildefons Lima Sola converting Andorra's fourth goal of the qualification campaign from the penalty spot, before Eden Hazard restored Belgium's two-goal advantage with a penalty of his own.

GOAL HAZARD! Andorra 1-3 Belgium http://t.co/UKbKHMcwKF

— Live Football Goals (@FootyLiveVines) October 10, 2015

And the visitors made it four shortly after, Gent forward Laurent Depoitre converting a right-wing cross.

Depoitre anota el 4-1 Para Bélgica https://t.co/Cl7mfDysDd http://t.co/v2kDeQ9CX0

— LOCO X EL FÚTBOL® (@LOCOXELFUTTBOL) October 10, 2015

Should they qualify as expected, Belgium will be among the favourites to win next summer's European Championships in France.

[Twitter]

Belgium manager Marc Wilmots has hit out at Chelsea winger Eden Hazard and Liverpool striker Christian Benteke after they each turned in poor performances for the national side against Cyprus in a 1-0 win.

It was Hazard who got on the scoresheet in the 85th minute to prevent an embarrassing result for the Red Devils, who are ranked second in the FIFA world rankings. But speaking after the match, Wilmots insisted the Blues star needs to improve.

“He (Hazard) was the worst tonight,” said Wilmots, per Daniel Prescott of the MailOnline. “I thought about substituting him, but in the last 10 minutes he always has the ability to do that. At the World Cup, this was the case. I obviously expect more from him, but he will grow as the season progresses.”

While the goal papered over the cracks of an underwhelming effort from Belgium, it was a significant strike, as Hazard’s goal meant the team’s spot at the 2016 European Championships is now virtually secured.

Here’s a look at the winning goal, per OnSideAr:

بلجيكا 1 : 0 قبرص https://t.co/p0WSprTGuM

— أخبار كرة القدم (@OnSideAr) September 6, 2015

A bullish Wilmots wasn’t too pleased with Benteke either. The burly striker was dragged off at half-time after he was ineffectual in the opening 45 minutes and his manager branded his display a “half-performance.” Liverpool team-mate Divock Origi replaced Benteke for the second period.

In fairness to Benteke, it was his first game back in the team since suffering a thigh problem, per Andy Kelly of the Liverpool Echo. Nevertheless, the forward hasn’t quite been at his best since a £32.5 million summer move to the Reds from Aston Villa and seems to be taking a little bit of time to adjust to his new surroundings.

Hazard hasn’t enjoyed the best of starts to the season for his club, either, as we can see here courtesy of OptaJoe:

7 - Eden Hazard has gone seven PL apps without a goal, his second longest scoreless spell at Chelsea. Drought.https://t.co/M5uwwvLZE3

— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) September 2, 2015

Indeed, as noted in Prescott’s piece, Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho has also been openly critical of Hazard this season, suggesting he has a “responsibility” to match the standards he showcased last term, which won him the PFA and Football Writers' Association Player of the Year awards.

One of the main traits Hazard possesses that sets him aside from other wide players is the level of consistency he shows. At the moment, those levels aren’t quite there, but the fact he’s still popping up with massive contributions in big moments is the sign of a player who has matured and is ready to take responsibility.

As noted by Mourinholic, the Chelsea man actually endured a similarly slow start last season before going on to achieve great things:

https://twitter.com/Mourinholic/status/640622654026813440

Belgium seem to be having the same issues every time they take to the field. The talent is undoubtedly there, with quality in every facet of the squad. But the Red Devils have struggled to put it together recently, and it’s up to the manager to find a way of getting these wonderful players to gel.

Drawing the best out of players like Benteke and Hazard will be easier once Wilmots finds that formula. But for the time being, while his openly critical stance may be a motivational tool, perhaps he should be looking at his own role before blasting his players in public.