On paper, this is a frontline capable of striking fear into the heart of any defence at Euro 2024.
But football is played on grass, not paper, as you might have noticed. And an attack which sounded good in theory certainly didn’t work so well in practice.
In a performance reminiscent of his nightmare afternoon against Croatia at the 2022 World Cup – Belgium crashing out in the group-stages – Romelu Lukaku again looked like a man who had walked under 13 ladders on his way to the stadium, tripping into a shelf full of mirrors while spilling an entire shaker of salt.
Twice Lukaku had goals ruled out by VAR, adding to the Chelsea misfit’s frustration after a couple of guilt-edged misses. Kevin de Bruyne, meanwhile, was more like the man who struggled in the FA Cup final than the man who appeared to rediscover his golden touch in June’s friendly fixtures.
Leandro Trossard, meanwhile, certianly did not take his sparkling Arsenal form into the tournament. Ineffective wide on the left and perhaps fortunate to stay on until the 74th minute.
Belgium lose as Arsenal’s Leandro Trossard struggles
Andros Townsend, during his co-commentary role for ITV Sport, noted that Trossard ‘looked lost’ out wide but was much improved once Domenico Tedesco shifted him into a more central role. Still, very little came off for a man who’s touch deserted him frequently up against a broad-shouldered wall of uncompromising Slovakian centre-halves.
“We must point out Trossard’s lackluster performance on the wing,” former Belgium and Newcastle United defender Philippe Albert told RTBF following a result which has Rote Duivels supporters fearing another first-round exit.
“On the left, in the first-half, he was not there. I even thought that Tedesco was going to replace him at half-time to bring (Yannick Ferreira) Carrasco up the pitch and play Maxim de Cuyper, who would have done the trick (at left-back).
“But he stuck to his ideas. It’s not a disaster, because we are capable of winning the next two matches, but we put a little more pressure on ourselves for the next match against Romania.”
Trossard scored 17 goals for Arsenal last season and actually arrived in Germany in decent form for his country. The former Brighton and Hove Albion forward scored in each of his final two friendly outings, and three in his last five under Tedesco.
“Trossard, of whom I am certainly a fan, did not deliver what I expected,” adds Gert Verheyen, capped 50 times by Belgium in the 1990s and early-2000s.
Alexandre Braeckman, a reporter for RTL, was even more forthcoming in his criticism of a player who is yet to consistently replicate his often sparkling club form on the national stage.
‘Catastrophic’
“I don’t understand what he was still doing on the pitch in the second half,” said a baffled Braeckman, Trossard’s decision making a particular bone of contention. “I found him catastrophic. In his game, he missed everything. He missed a lot of things.
“We should have scored a goal where he tried a long-range shot while Lukaku was alone on the other side. I think he has lost any chance of starting another match at the Euros.”
He was not the only Arsenal player who endured a difficult afternoon, meanwhile, Oleksandr Zinchenko apologising after an ’embarrassing’ 3-0 defeat by Romania.
Zinchenko, at least, is more-than likely to retain his starting place. The same cannot be said of Trossard, however, perhaps at risk of the chop by a manager who is not exactly short of options out wide.
Johan Bakayoko, so impressive for PSV Eindhoven last season, is waiting in the wings. As is Lois Openda, the free-scoring RB Leipzig speedster who was only denied an immediate assist off the bench by a harsh, VAR-influenced handball call.
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