Belgium banking on strength in depth
Print Edition
BELGIUM breathed a sigh of relief after edging past Algeria 2-1 on Tuesday to get its World Cup campaign off to a winning start but the depth of its squad looks set to carry it well past the group stage.
The Belgians, who breezed through the qualifiers unbeaten, have arrived in Brazil as one of the top title favorites with arguably their best team in a generation.
Yet a lackluster first half and a below-par performance by some of their top players, including Eden Hazard and Romelu Lukaku, had them fretting at halftime before a dominant second period that confirmed their status as Group H favorites.
Coach Marc Wilmots had talented substitutes to thank for the win as Marouane Fellaini and Dries Mertens scored late in the game to turn things around after Algeria’s first-half lead.
It is that depth of quality that makes Belgium so dangerous with more than 11 players capable of playing top level football.
Belgium had 10 shots on goal compared to Algeria’s one as it outclassed its opponent throughout the match but the World Cup opener did give it the jitters initially.
Lots of firepower
With hugely talented players such as Thomas Vermaelen, Kevin Mirallas, Nicolas Lombaerts and Adnan Januzaj left on the bench, Belgium has lots of firepower in reserve for the coming games.
Not many World Cup teams can boast substitutes of such caliber and then have the luxury of not playing them.
“We’ve a very good back-room with very good substitutes,” Wilmots said. “I’ve very powerful players.”
Belgium has a long history in the World Cup and was a semifinalist back in 1986 but the team had not qualified for the finals since 2002.
There was more good news later with group rivals Russia and South Korea drawing 1-1, leaving Belgium alone atop.
Algeria, meanwhile, ended its 28-year wait for a World Cup goal when it took the lead with a Sofiane Feghouli penalty in the 25th minute.
It was Algeria’s first goal at the tournament since Djamel Zidane scored against Northern Ireland in a 1-1 1986 tie.
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