5 Belgium players who underperformed against Wales | 2022 FIFA World Cup Qualifiers
Having already booked their place at the 2022 World Cup, Belgium traveled to Wales for their final World Cup Qualifying fixture on Tuesday night.
Wales, who were in second position in Group E, needed to avoid defeat to play in the knockouts. In the end, they secured a 1-1 draw and kept their hopes alive to play in their first-ever World Cup finals since 1958.
Belgium, the top-ranked team in the world, were favorites to bring back maximum points from Wales despite playing without a few key players. Eden Hazard and Romelu Lukaku were not fit to feature, while the likes of Jan Vertonghen and Dries Mertens were left on the bench.
They still had plenty of quality on the pitch and scored the first goal of the match through Kevin De Bruyne.
The hosts were rattled by the early goal, but did well to come up with a reply just past the half-hour mark. Kieffer Moore pounced on Belgium’s defensive lapses to restore parity. Both teams tried their best to pull ahead in the second half, but came up empty-handed.
Despite being heavyweights, Belgium failed to impose themselves and were fortunate to extend their unbeaten streak in World Cup qualifiers to 28 games. H
ere are the five Belgians who failed to live up to their billing in the 1-1 draw with Wales:
#5 Charles De Ketelaere
Club Brugge winger Charles De Ketelaere got the opportunity to start against Wales on Tuesday night.
Playing in Eden Hazard’s position, De Ketelaere needed to do something extra special to present himself as a real contender. Unfortunately, he failed to drive the point home.
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Thanks to Wales’ midfielders, the Brugge man did not get the service he needed to thrive. He tried to drop deep to collect the ball but to no avail. It was a disappointing night for the left-winger.
#4 Thomas Meunier
At Euro 2020, Thomas Meunier was a Fantasy League favorite. Not only was he a threat going forward, but he was also a solid defender. On Tuesday night, he failed to tick the latter box.
Seeing Meunier come off not injured 🙏🏼 https://t.co/Dzi4vsDMDP
The marauding wing-back did his job going forward and linked time and again with the Belgian attackers. However, he looked a little rusty while defending.
Meunier often took his time to resume his defensive duties, which was risky given how dangerous Wales were on the counters. He got away in the end, but the outcome could have easily been a lot worse.