{"id":1160,"date":"2018-07-07T15:56:26","date_gmt":"2018-07-07T10:26:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/football-tribe.com\/india\/?p=1160"},"modified":"2018-07-07T15:58:55","modified_gmt":"2018-07-07T10:28:55","slug":"brazil-1-2-belgium-five-things-we-learned-from-the-red-devils-win","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/football-tribe.com\/india\/2018\/07\/07\/brazil-1-2-belgium-five-things-we-learned-from-the-red-devils-win\/","title":{"rendered":"Brazil 1-2 Belgium: Five Things We Learned From the Red Devils Win"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Goodbye, South America.<\/p>\n

Belgium knocked off World Cup favourite Brazil 2-1 on Friday in the quarterfinals, moving on to the semifinals to face France. Kevin De Bruyne’s winner sets up what is guaranteed to be an all-European semifinal on both sides of the bracket.<\/p>\n

Belgium took a commanding 2-0 lead in the first half, looking sharp in the middle in the process, and Roberto Martinez’s team was able to hold on late as Brazil looked likely to follow up its first goal in the match with an equalizer. An inspired, world-class Thibaut Courtois made numerous key saves, including one in the 94th minute to keep Neymar out.<\/p>\n

There was no doubting the incredible talent of this Belgium squad heading into the World Cup, only the nagging question of whether or not a group of players from a country outside the historic elite could convince themselves of their superiority when it truly mattered. They provided the most emphatic of answers at Kazan Arena.<\/p>\n

1.Belgium three-man defence looked vulnerable and exposed<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

It is a strange paradox that the victory that will be regarded as this Belgium team\u2019s coming of age also raised more questions than answers about their World Cup chances.<\/p>\n

They looked terrified in the opening exchanges as Brazil started confidently, and might have been as much as 3-0 down by the time Fernandinho found his own net. Once ahead they had the luxury of playing on the break, which begs the question as to why Brazil were able to counter them with such alarming regularity in the second half.<\/p>\n

Augusto\u2019s header to give Brazil life was totally unmarked, and both he and Coutinho missed gilt-edged chances to level the match. Martinez\u2019s insistence on leaving three men upfield was admirable but surely unwise against such talented opponents.<\/p>\n

Belgium may not be afforded the luxury of a lead against France in the semi-final. They almost certainly won\u2019t have the luxury of being so lax in defence.<\/p>\n

On a glorious night in Belgium football history, there was one negative as defender Thomas Meunier picked up another booking and will be suspended against France.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

2. Lukaku needs to score in big games and get behind defenders<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Martinez sprung the tactical surprise that defined the first half, deploying De Bruyne as a false nine and Lukaku on the right of the front three, as he did on occasion at Everton.<\/p>\n

The switch allowed the Manchester United striker to exploit the acres of space behind Marcelo and gain a head of steam in isolation against Miranda. It was a masterstroke.<\/p>\n

Lukaku\u2019s touch occasionally failed him as it often does, but he presents a unique match-up problem charging infield from wide and clearly has the intelligence to function out of his No 9 comfort zone. Jose Mourinho is unlikely to ever use him there, but Martinez has shown him an alternative.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

3.Lack of a Central Midfielder hurting Belgium…Nainggolan omission justified?<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Formation might show Belgium playing with 3-4-3 but in reality, the Belgium midfield is often stretched\u00a0by the opponent as evident in the game against Japan and now Brazil. Hazard is comfortable playing on a more wider role while Roberto Martinez uses De Bruyne more as a False Nine. With Radja Naninggolan not in the World Cup squad, the midfield looks like a giant hole.<\/p>\n

With Meunier and Carrasco on the wings, combative midfielder Fellaini\u00a0dropping deep to assist the three-man defence the Belgium midfield leaves vacant spaces for the opponent to operate and control the game. Brazil in the first half had dominated the midfield with Paulinho, Coutinho and Willian exploited the vacant space in the middle.<\/p>\n

Belgium’s lack of a Modric like central midfielder is proving detrimental to their attacking talent as Fellaini and Alex Witsel has to cover huge distances to construct attack and link the talented forward line of Lukaku, Hazard and De Bruyne. With the stretched gap in the central pitch added with Fellaini’s\u00a0poor accuracy of passing the pressure falls right back on the Belgium backline even after the interception or winning the ball.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

4.Roberto Martinez lucky to survive on “risky” strategy<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

This was a great night for Martinez and his assistant, Thierry Henry, whose plan carried Belgium over the line by the skin of their teeth. Playing a 3-4-3 or a 3-4-2-1 Fellaini in midfield with Witsel in front of a back three initially and Lukaku and Hazard wide, allowing De Bruyne to come through the middle as a False Nine. They left two up at all times, taking a risk on exploiting Brazil\u2019s vulnerability in the wide positions and although Belgium\u2019s first was a Fernandinho own goal their second, from De Bruyne, was an out-of-your-seat, counter-attacking classic.<\/p>\n

Belgium looked vulnerable in the opening exchanges as Brazil started confidently, and might have been as much as 3-0 down by the time Fernandinho found his own net. Once ahead they had the luxury of playing on the break, which begs the question as to why Brazil were able to counter them with such alarming regularity in the second half.<\/p>\n

Although the plan was not aesthetic, plonking Marouane Fellaini in midfield alongside Axel Witsel was key to the win. Not only did the duo broke down wave after wave of Brazilian attacks, they freed de Bruyne and Eden Hazard to counter at speed. On the biggest stage of all, Martinez can raise a triumphant fist and say that he had formulated Brazil’s downfall.<\/p>\n

Augusto\u2019s header to give Brazil life was totally unmarked, and both he and Coutinho missed gilt-edged chances to level the match. Martinez\u2019s insistence on leaving three men upfield was admirable but surely unwise against such talented opponents.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

5.Hazard and De Bruyne were lightning quick in their counter-attacks:<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Hazard was pivotal in the final minutes as he drew fouls and ran down the clock. De Bruyne was a danger whenever he was inside Brazil’s half. But it was the much-maligned Fellaini who should take a bow. The man with the big afro had always been ridiculed for his big hair, his limitations as a footballer and his penchant for a flying elbow. But it was his muscular approach that won the day for Belgium. He was focused on his task of breaking down Brazil’s moves and feeding his team-mates with a simple task. It was not glamorous but it certainly swung the result.<\/p>\n

Five-time winners Brazil were left stunned, as Belgium\u2019s famed \u2018Golden Generation\u2019 \u00adfinally lived up to their \u00adpotential\u2013 and they can go all the way in Russia.<\/p>\n

Manchester City\u2019s Kevin De Bruyne and United\u2019s Romelu Lukaku were Belgium\u2019s stand-out performers, combining for a quite stunning second goal, as Roberto Martinez\u2019s side turned on the style in Kazan.<\/p>\n

And the Manchester \u00adplaymaker, which ran \u00adthroughout this enthralling clash, saw City skipper Vincent Kompany engineer the opener.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Goodbye, South America. Belgium knocked off World Cup favourite Brazil 2-1 on Friday in the quarterfinals, moving on to the semifinals to face France. Kevin De Bruyne’s winner sets up what is guaranteed to be an all-European semifinal on both sides of the bracket. Belgium took a commanding 2-0 lead in the first half, looking sharp in the middle in the process, and Roberto Martinez’s team was able to hold on late as Brazil looked likely to follow up its first goal in the match with an equalizer. An inspired, world-class Thibaut Courtois made numerous key saves, including one in the 94th minute to keep Neymar out. There was no … Continue reading “Brazil 1-2 Belgium: Five Things We Learned From the Red Devils Win”<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":76,"featured_media":1167,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[475,402,474,487,482,480,485,479,481,488,483,478,477,137,476,484,486],"class_list":["post-1160","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-alisson-fagner","tag-belgium","tag-belgium-vs-brazil","tag-chadli-de-bruyne","tag-courtois-alderweireld","tag-coutinho-willian","tag-fellaini","tag-fernandinho","tag-gabriel-jesus","tag-hazard-lukaku","tag-kompany","tag-marcelo-paulinho","tag-miranda","tag-neymar","tag-silva","tag-vertonghen-meunier","tag-witsel"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/football-tribe.com\/india\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1160","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/football-tribe.com\/india\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/football-tribe.com\/india\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/football-tribe.com\/india\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/76"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/football-tribe.com\/india\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1160"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/football-tribe.com\/india\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1160\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/football-tribe.com\/india\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1167"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/football-tribe.com\/india\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1160"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/football-tribe.com\/india\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1160"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/football-tribe.com\/india\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1160"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}