Team analysis
Belgium
| No. | Player | Born | Pos. | GER | CZE | SVN | CRO | FRA | GS | Club |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jens Teunckens | 30/01/1998 | Goalkeeper | 80 | 80 | 80 | 80 | 80 | Club Brugge (BEL) | |
| 2 | Kino Delorge | 05/01/1998 | Defender | 72* | 80 | 80 | 70* | 80 | KRC Genk (BEL) | |
| 3 | Rubin Seigers | 11/01/1998 | Defender | 80 | 80 | 80 | 80 | 80 | 1 | KRC Genk (BEL) |
| 4 | Wout Faes | 03/04/1998 | Defender | 80 | 80 | 80 | 80 | RSC Anderlecht (BEL) | ||
| 5 | Christophe Janssens | 09/03/1998 | Defender | 80 | 80 | 80 | 80 | 80 | Club Brugge (BEL) | |
| 6 | Matisse Thuys | 24/01/1998 | Midfield | 80 | 80 | 57* | 80 | 80 | KRC Genk (BEL) | |
| 7 | Ismail Azzaoui | 06/01/1998 | Forward | 80 | 80* | 80 | 80 | 80 | 3 | Tottenham Hotspur (ENG) |
| 8 | Alper Ademoglu | 10/04/1998 | Midfield | 80 | 80 | 80 | 80 | 80 | RSC Anderlecht (BEL) | |
| 9 | Dennis Van Vaerenbergh | 26/06/1998 | Forward | 64* | 80 | 80 | 80 | 80 | 2 | Club Brugge (BEL) |
| 10 | Orel Mangala | 18/03/1998 | Midfield | 80 | 69* | 74* | 28+ | RSC Anderlecht (BEL) | ||
| 11 | Lennerd Daneels | 10/04/1998 | Forward | 68* | 40* | 20+ | 80 | 2+ | PSV Eindhoven (NED) | |
| 12 | Gaetan Coucke | 03/11/1998 | Goalkeeper | KRC Genk (BEL) | ||||||
| 13 | Dries Caignau | 08/01/1998 | Defender | 8+ | 80 | 10+ | KAA Gent (BEL) | |||
| 14 | Siebe Horemans | 02/06/1998 | Defender | KAA Gent (BEL) | ||||||
| 15 | Dante Rigo | 11/12/1998 | Midfield | 11+ | 23+ | 77* | 52* | PSV Eindhoven (NED) | ||
| 16 | Nelson Azevedo-Janelas | 12/02/1998 | Forward | 12+ | RSC Anderlecht (BEL) | |||||
| 17 | Jorn Vanсamp | 28/10/1998 | Forward | 16+ | 1+ | 6+ | RSC Anderlecht (BEL) | |||
| 18 | Matthias Verreth | 20/02/1998 | Forward | 40+ | 60* | 3+ | 78* | PSV Eindhoven (NED) |
©Sportsfile
Coach: Bob Browaeys
19/09/68
"Reaching the semi-finals was a big achievement for a small country like Belgium and I was proud of the players' performance. The players were disappointed because we were close to the final, but the important thing is that they can learn a lot from the five games we played. The tournament encourages us to think about how we can do better and, for the coaching staff, the important thing was to analyse the matches and see what lessons we can learn ahead of the World Cup."
Belgium team analysis
• 4-3-3 with disciplined covering by screening midfielder Matisse Thuys
• Excellent goalkeeper initiating build-up and counterattacks
• Passing game using width with deep diagonal passes behind defenders
• 4-1-4-1 when defending, pressure on ball, but solid 4-1 shape at the back
• Pace and off-ball movement on flanks, especially Ismail Azzaoui on right
• Attack well-led by versatile Dennis Van Vaerenbergh; back-to-goal lay-offs
• High levels of technique, pace, game reading; good bench, shrewd substitutions