Belgian midfield stars of Everton, Chelsea, and now Tottenham Hotspur have been outstanding this season. Nestor Rodrigues takes a closer look.
Belgian footballers have made quite a name for themselves in recent years notably in the Barclays Premier League. Just browse the squad lists of the 20 clubs and many would be able to pick out players that belong to Belgium’s national football team, Marouane Fellaini, Eden Hazard and Moussa Dembele are the star picks.
With the start of the Premier League campaign, many players have provided a a spark that their respective teams needed to overcome their opposition and with two games already gone by- and three in the case of Chelsea, it is the Belgians that adorn the headlines.
Manchester United lost their first game of the season due to the sole, towering header from the Belgian afroman Marouane Fellaini. Fellaini proved a thorn in the back for United who was used as a target man creating a number of chances and putting the defense under constant pressure. His robust physique, athleticism, and physical approach to the game makes it very hard for teams to dictate play. He was constantly bullying Michael Carrick as he correctly saw him as the weak spot in United’s defense and scored the match winning goal taking all three points to Goodison Park.
Dembele too proved a handful in Manchester United’s clash with Fulham. He shares similar traits as Felliani with a strong physique and his physical approach to the game. The Belgian’s forward runs were a driving force for the Cottagers which caused alot of problems for the Reds in their own half. At times he looked like the sole player running the midfield and United’s midfield trio of Anderson, Cleverley and Kagawa were were simply overrun by the sheer power of the Belgian, especially in the game’s latter stages. No wonder Sir Alex had Dembele on his list of summer targets, and now he has joined Tottenham Hotspur, providing him with an even greater stage from which to showcase his talents.
Finally we look at Eden Hazard. The player who was involved in the longest saga of this summer’s transfer window.Hazard saw himself linked with a number of suitors all over Europe offering multi-million deals for the talented wing wizard.Many would condemn Hazard for his love for limelight as the Belgian constantly tweeted about this possible destination which was part of many news headlines this summer. Just before his eminent transfer to Chelsea, the player was said to join one of England’s two Manchester clubs with Manchester City being most likely to sign him. Sir Alex Ferguson had also set him as his main target this summer but then to end the long transfer saga, Hazard shocked the world by signing for Chelsea claiming it was their Champions League victory that lured him to the club. Since joining the Blues, Hazard has made quite an impact scoring one goal and providing six assists proving just why Chelsea splashed £32 million pounds for the talented Belgian.
Other than the aformentioned trio, other Belgian players like Thomas Vermaelan, Vincent Kompany, Romelu Lukaku have been influential for their respective teams title charge with Kompany winning his first Premier League title with Manchester City. While new entrants Jan Vertonghen and Kevin Mirallas are yet to prove their worth.
All looks promising for the Belgians and as the league progresses we will see just how lethal these lads will prove to be. For now lets just look forward to yet another exciting season in the Barclays Premier League.
How will Dembele get on at Tottenham? Can Fellaini and Hazard continue to dominate?
image: © nicksarebi
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