Despite being given a scare in the first half when Israel drew 1-1, the Red Devils, unlike the Blues, did not miss out on their entry into the Football Nations League on Friday, September 6. The Belgian team, which won 3-1, played in front of a completely empty stadium in Debrecen, Hungary, a country that far-right populist leader Viktor Orban says is the safest in Europe for the Jewish minority.
After this hard-fought match 1,500 km from Belgium and 2,700 km from Israel, for security reasons and because all Belgian cities refused to host it, the Devils will travel with relative ease and fear of a new disappointment against France. Décines, near Lyon, on Monday 9 September (20:45), to play their second match of the competition.
“We are lucky to play against them again, it is up to us to learn from our mistakes.said striker Jérémy Doku on Thursday, September 5. We are confident, we are not thinking about the euro or the [Mondial au] Qatar. » He added. History, without a doubt, to give the impression that both the elimination in the first round of the World Cup, in December 2022, and the recent disappointment during the European Championship (elimination in the round of 16 by France), or even the other notable defeat against France (1-0 in the semi-finals of the World Cup in Russia, in 2018) have been forgotten.
In any case, the national team’s supporters have been left stunned by the successive failures of a team that, during the major competitions, has systematically disappointed the hopes placed in it. Currently in the reconstruction phase, it will be deprived, on Monday, of several of its pillars, including Romelu Lukaku and Thibaut Courtois.
At his own request, the centre forward and top scorer in the history of the national team was not selected: he is busy with his training at his new club, Napoli. The Real Madrid goalkeeper slammed the door and formalised his lack of confidence in the coach, Domenico Tedesco. In a message to his fans published on social networks, he confided, on 22 August, his “Immense love for the national jersey” but especially expressed “lack of confidence” in the coach.
A criticized but prolonged coach
In June 2023, when captain Kevin De Bruyne was injured, Domenico Tedesco entrusted the armband to Romelu Lukaku, provoking the wrath of the goalkeeper with 100 caps. After some time of reflection, Kevin De Bruyne, 33, for his part, removed an additional worry from Domenico Tedesco: he will continue to play with the national team until 2026 and, in addition, he scored two of his team’s three goals in Debrecen.
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