With the recent influx of Belgian
players into the Premier League, England and the world have become obsessed
with the Belgian national team. Tonight marks the biggest challenge for this gifted
squad of players to date, their first world cup match since 2002. The only
player in the squad who featured at their last World Cup is veteran centre half
Daniel Van Buyten, highlighting how much of a new experience this is for a
generation of Belgian players and fans. The question is, will this new wave of
Belgian stars live up to their billing on the greatest stage of them all? For
me, the answer is a resounding yes, across the pitch they don’t just have
potential, they have established European players.
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| Belgium have a terrific team spirit |
I’ve highlighted three of
their players that will be vital to the success of their World Cup campaign,
starting with their La Liga winning keeper Thibaut Courtois. The former Genk
man has been in imperious form since his arrival at the Vicente Calderon in
2011, he was brought into replace the Manchester United bound David De Gea and
if anything has surpassed the Spanish international with his consistent performances
for Atleti. He excels at shot stopping, commanding his area, coming for crosses
and for such a young keeper he exudes calmness, these qualities have given Chelsea
food for thought with Petr Cech coming to the latter stages of his career. For
a Belgian team that is expected to dominate games, they’ll need a keeper who
can stay alert even if he isn’t overly busy during a game, and for me, Courtois
fits the bill. Next on my list is Manchester City centre half Vincent Kompany,
it has been a meteoric rise for a player who in the early years of his City
career was deployed by Mark Hughes as a defensive midfielder. In recent seasons
he has developed into a beast of a defender, one who can dominate in the air
and on the deck. He also possesses the ability to inspire those around him, as
we have seen on numerous occasions for City, when they are seemingly out of
games he drags his team mates through kicking, screaming and onto victory. With
all the midfield talent in the squad my final choice may come as a surprise to
some, Chelsea’s Romelu Lukaku. Despite his differences with Jose Mourhino
(which may stem from off the field problems rather than Jose doubting his
ability) you cannot argue with his record at Anderlecht, West Brom and Everton,
three clubs that all play different styles and yet Lukaku has been prolific at
each of them. His unique mix of pace and power, makes me confident that he will
explode all over this tournament, and with the service he will receive from
Hazard and co, he is a dark horse for top scorer. It’s a simple adage but every
team needs a goal scorer, and I believe Lukaku is the man for the job.
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