Belgium Seeks to Regain Its Shine in the 2026 World Cup

Belgium enters the 2026 World Cup finals with great ambitions, despite French coach Rudi Garcia's awareness that the strength of the "Red Devils" is primarily concentrated in the forward line.

The team relies on the experience of Kevin De Bruyne, the skills of Jeremy Doku, and the scoring ability of Romelu Lukaku, while the defense is considered the weakest link following the gradual retirement of golden generation stars like Vincent Kompany and Jan Vertonghen. Therefore, Garcia prefers to play with four defenders to maintain as many attacking elements as possible.

The French coach relies on a medium defensive block to provide support for the attack and avoid placing additional burdens on the defenders. However, Lukaku's situation raises some concerns before the tournament kicks off. The historic striker for the Belgian national team, with 90 goals, has suffered from recurring injuries this season and was affected by his father's death, which kept him away from the rhythm of matches for long periods. Despite his return by scoring a goal in the last friendly match against Croatia, he enters the World Cup somewhat short of his ideal readiness.

Belgium had a relatively comfortable qualifying campaign against Wales, North Macedonia, Kazakhstan, and Liechtenstein, finishing without any losses and scoring 29 goals in eight matches. Despite some setbacks with three draws, the team demonstrated significant offensive strength, with particular attention on Doku in the attacking third and goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois, who remains the biggest defensive assurance.

Doku is considered the standout star in the current lineup, having continued his development with Manchester City, adding greater effectiveness in assists and scoring to his already impressive speed.

The name of the young forward Matias Fernandez Bardo stands out as one of the promising faces after choosing to represent Belgium instead of Spain, while left-back Maxime De Kuyper plays an important role thanks to his regular offensive contributions.

The Belgians hope that this generation can reach at least the round of 16 and bring the national team, which is in a group alongside Egypt, Iran, and New Zealand, back into the global competition after years of declining results from the golden generation.