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Looking Ahead: 2009 In Belgian Football

julien — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 23:38:20 +0000

The Rode Duivels finished 2008 with a draw in an international friendly against Luxembourg. It was a very disappointing, frustrating, and angering (understatement) result. Prior to that fiasco, Belgium was having a nice journey in the 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifying. Belgium tied Turkey 1-1 and just lost by one goal against Spain with a score of 1-2. Belgium is third in Group 5 with 7 points, just one behind Turkey. On March 3, 2009, Belgium will face Bosnia-Herzegovina for the Rode Duivels’ 5th match of the group stage qualifying. Before that match, the Belgians will play a friendly against Slovenia at home. After that match the schedule for next year, thus far, has more 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifying matches including matches against Spain, Estonia, and Turkey. Belgium needs to get the better of Turkey, when they meet each other again, to help our chances for a spot in South Africa two years from now. Regarding our FIFA ranking, it slipped again in the November 8th rankings four spots to 55. I would like to see several things next year for the Rode Duivels: a better FIFA ranking, clinching a spot in the WC 2010, and a new coach. René Vandereycken has been the coach for 3 years now. Our draw against Luxembourg only reinforces my view that it is time for him to go.

Vandereycken Releases Squad Against Luxembourg

julien — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 00:24:19 +0000

René Vandereycken released the Rode Duivels line-up against Luxembourg in an upcoming international friendly. The match will be next Wednesday at 20:30 H in Luxembourg. Moussa Dembele will be replaced by Kevin Mirallas due to Moussa’s knee injury. The selection:
Keepers: Stijn Stijnen (Club Bruges), Silvio Proto (Germinal Beerschot), Logan Bailly (Racing Genk)

Defenders: Filip Daems (Moenchengladbach/All), Vincent Kompany (Manchester City/Ang), Timmy Simons (PSV Eindhoven/P-B), Daniel van Buyten (Bayern Munich/All), Jelle Van Damme (Anderlecht), Thomas Vermaelen (Ajax Amsterdam/P-B)

Midfielders: Steven Defour (Standard), Marouane Fellaini (Everton/Ang), Faris Haroun (Germinal Beerschot), Axel Witsel (Standard), Anthony Vanden Borre (Gênes/Ita), Jan Vertonghen (Ajax Amsterdam/P-B), Guillaume Gillet (Anderlecht), Maarten Martens (AZ Alkmaar/P-B)

Attackers: Tom De Sutter (Cercle Bruges), Wesley Sonck (Club Bruges), Stijn De Smet (Cercle Bruges), Kevin Mirallas (AS Saint-Etienne/Fra).

International Friendly: Germany Downs Belgium

julien — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 19:47:25 +0000

I apologize for the late post. I moved into my university dorm recently and classes just started. I have been really busy. Last Wednesday, Belgium played an international friendly against footballl powerhouse Germany. It was their 23rd encounter against the Germans. They have a huge upperhand on us in the series with 18 wins, just 4 losses, and 1 draw. The three-time FIFA World Cup champions and runners up to the Euro 08 beat us 2-0. The first goal was scored in the 58th minute thanks to a stupid foul from Van Buyten on Gomez that set up a penalty kick. Schweinsteiger scored the goal on the penalty spot beating Stijnen. Then later in the 77′, Marin gave Germany another goal, sealing the match. Belgium has only won 1 match this year under René Vandereycken and that was against a club side, Standard. I want our main squad to be as successful as our youth. The Belgium olympic squad had a nice run. I will recap the Brazil match in the coming days.

Nigeria Ends Belgium’s Goal Medal Hopes

julien — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 15:33:41 +0000

Belgium’s road to the Olympic Men’s Football Final ended yesterday against Nigeria. After solidly advancing from the group stages and upsetting Italy, the Nigerians proved too much for the Young Devils. The match started out strong for Nigeria. Offensively, they were sound all match leading to a final score of Nigeria 4-1 Belgium. This match came down to two things: fatigue and tactics. In the first half I could tell that the Belgians were missing the charisma from their earlier matches. The Italians really wore them down. Our players didn’t have much in the tank to play against Nigeria. Moussa Dembélé, who was a key presence in our earlier matches, didn’t do much yesterday. I think fatigue was involved. Also, our 4-5-1 formation did not fare well against Nigeria’s 4-3-3. Nigeria was able to mix up their offense with that formation. It seemed like they never attacked the same way. Nigerian passing was crisp and accurate. They usually managed to find Peter Odemwingie. The Belgian defense wasn’t weak, just fragile since we lacked possession for most of the match. Plus we couldn’t close down the midfield. For most of the match, the ball was in our third of the pitch. You never want to see that. Both teams’ goalkeepers came up with big saves. Vanzekin was Nigeria’s best defense and Bailly prevented a massacre. It was a hugely disappointing result for us considering what we accomplished earlier this tournament. “We are very disappointed with the result. We had bigger expectations for this game. We knew that we were going to be playing a very strong team who possess great strength and great speed, but they caused us too many problems in the opening 30 minutes. After that we had chances and I thought that we were the better team, but then they scored the second which made life very difficult for us and after that they controlled the rest of the game. I think they have a great chance to win the tournament. Now we must target the bronze medal” (Belgium coach Jean-François de Sart). Our next match is the Bronze Medal Match this Friday. We will play an angry Brazil from their loss to Argentina. Belgium already played Brazil in the group stages. That match ended well for the Belgians (Brazil 1-0 Belgium) considering we were against Brazil and we finished with only 9 men. This next match could be very different. Dunga’s men will be looking to take some silverware from this competition. It won’t be easy. Line-ups:

Nigeria:
VANZEKIN Ambruse
OKONKWO Chibuzor
APAM Onyekachi
ADELEYE Dele
ADEFEMI Olubayo
KAITA Sani
AJILORE Ebenezer
OGBUKE OBASI Chinedu
OBINNA Victor
OKORONKWO Solomon
ODEMWINGIE Peter
JAMES Monday
ISAAC Promise
AMBROSE Efe
ANICHEBE Victor
EKPO Emmanuel
EZENWA Ikechukwu
OLUFEMI Oladapo

Belgium:
BAILLY Logan
DE ROOVER Sepp
POCOGNOLI Sebastien
SIMAEYS Jeroen
HAROUN Faris
VERTONGHEN Jan
MARTENS Maarten
VANDEN BORRE Anthony
DE MUL Tom
MIRALLAS Kevin
DEMBELE Moussa
MA-KALAMBAY Yves
CIMAN Laurent
MULEMO Landry
ODIDJA-OFOE Vadis
DE WINTER Yves
VERMAELEN Thomas
FELLAINI Marouane

Yellow Cards: Ebenezer AJILORE (NGA) 5′, Jeroen SIMAEYS (BEL) 41′, Chibuzor OKONKWO (NGA) 61′, Vadis ODJIDJA-OFOE (BEL) 69′, Jan VERTONGHEN (BEL) 76′.

Goals: Olubayo ADEFEMI (17′), Chinedu OGBUKE OBASI (59′, 72′), Chibuzor OKONKWO (78′), Laurent CIMAN (88′).

1st Half
-Nigeria starts the match off with immediate pressure on the Belgian defense. Odemwingie was a part of the nice buildup.
-Ajilore gets an early booking (4′).
-Dembélé wins an early corner (8′).
-Nigeria continues to successfully find Odemwingie on the attack.
-Poor defense lets Adefemi score on a rebound.
-Nigeria continued to dominate possession.
-The Belgiums are having trouble sinking their teeth into the match.
-Towards the end of the half Belgium finally had some possession.
-de Sart is agitated.
-Obasi keeps showing us his technical prowess with stepovers and crisp passing.
-Handball from Simaeys draws a yellow card.
-Belgium’s 4-5-1 isn’t faring well against Nigeria’s 4-3-3.
-44′: Mirallas and Dembélé had a nice opportunity on a counter-attack.
-45′: Linesman gets an offfside wrong. A replay shows that Mirallas was well onside. Bad call.

2nd Half
-Terrific save by Bailly in the 50′.
-The Nigerians continue to play offensive footie.
-Vanzekin continues to make great saves.
-Belgium has picked up the pressure in this period.
-Vertonghen almost scored on a volley.
-Belgian defenders plead for an offside, but the linesman kept his flag down. Nigeria scores again pouring salt into Belgium’s wounds. Belgium has half an hour to even the score.
-Martens is substituted. He gives his captain armband to Vertonghen.
-Bailly has played well in goal all match for Belgium. He makes another great save in the 65′.
-It’s over for Belgium *sighs*. Nigeria scores again in the 72nd minute.
-Belgium makes their final substitutions.
-Dembélé hasn’t played as well in this match.
-Okonkwo patiently waits and scores in the 78′. The ball hit the side post and ricocheted in. Logan Bailly seems crushed mentally.
-de Sart has a hopeless expression on his face.
-Nigeria continues to dominate possession even late in the match.
-Laurent Ciman gets sort of a consolation goal for Belgium in the 88′.
-Final score Nigeria 4-1 Belgium.

Also, today the Belgium National Football Team (Rode Duivels as opposed to our Olympic squad) play Germany today in an international friendly at Nürnberg. We will be without Fellaini, Kompany, and Mpenza in that match.

Belgium Ties South Korea

julien — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 13:38:47 +0000

This Saturday the young devils, Belgium’s olympic squad, faced South Korea’s U-20. The match was a last minute preparation friendly for the upcoming Olympic Games. Tom De Mul score the first goal of the match in the 57′ thanks to a pass from Jeroen Simaeys. Belgium dominated the match and had numerous chances to score. However, the South Korean defense hung on allowing them to get a goal back. Kim Bok Kyung tied the score from a penalty kick. Belgium’s line-up:

Bailly, De Roover (46′ Ciman), Simaeys, Vermaelen , Pocognoli (65′ Mulemo), De Mul (65′ Vanden Borre), Fellaini (46′ Haroun), Vertonghen, Martens, Dembele (46′ De Smet), Mirallas (81′ Odjidja Ofoe).

Tomorrow, I will write about Belgium’s run in this year’s Milk Cup.

Olympic Games Countdown For Belgium: 3 Days!

julien — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 14:28:23 +0000

Yesterday, Belgium’s olympic squad arrived in Shenyang, China. There they will finish practicing and preparing for their first Olympic Games match against Brazil. The match is this Thursday leaving the young devils three days to prepare. Yves De Winter didn’t practice yesterday since he had the flu. Kevin Mirallas supposedly practiced despite of his knee injury from the South Korea friendly. Today, the Belgians practice from 18 H to 20 H (Chinese time) at the Tiexi Sports Centre. The first 15 minutes of practice will be open to the media. In the upcoming days, I will have a Milk Cup recap and details of the South Korea friendly.

Mirallas Will Play In South Korea Friendly

julien — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 15:53:17 +0000

Belgium olympic coach, Jean-François de Sart, is convinced that Kevin Mirallas will be fit enough to play against South Korea this Saturday. The young Belgians will play their U-20 squad in Seoul. Stijn De Smet is completely healed from his injury. He practiced with the team yesterday whereas Mirallas practiced on his own. De Sart expects Mirallas to rejoin the team in practice on Wednesday. The Belgian’s Wednesday practice consists of fitness and practicing on the field. Things are looking good for Belgium in the Olympics. We come off of a great performance against our tough neighbors, the Netherlands:
“The result is deceiving [0-1 score against the Netherlands]. We analyzed the match and I am satisfied with our 1st half. We played fresh football, but we failed to score. However, besides a small foul by Kompany, we didn’t let our opponents have any scoring chances. Defensively, we were very positive. The 2nd half wasn’t as good for us. Our players weren’t ready physically to play 90 minutes.”
-Jean-François de Sart (Belgium olympic coach).

Belgium Olympic Squad Arrives In Yantai, China

julien — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 02:41:32 +0000

The Belgium olympic squad arrived in Yantai, China today. There the Young Devils will prepare for the upcoming Olympic Games. Two injured players went with the team including Kevin Mirallas and Stijn De Smet. Mirallas’ trip with the young Belgians was doubtful for awhile due to his quadriceps injury. Giuseppe Rossini was supposed to replace him. Our olympic players will stay in Yantai till August 2nd. Then they will leave for Seoul, South Korea, to face the South Korea U-20 in a friendly. Jean-François de Sart, Belgian olympic coach, feels that Belgium can win a medal from the competition: “If our northern neighbors [the Netherlands] can obtain a medal from Pekin, why can’t we? Our first objective is to secure a spot in the quarter final. I didn’t forget the quality of our competitors. We start the tournament against the favorites Brazil. That is an advantage. We will see how good are team is.”

Belgium Lose To Rival Netherlands

julien — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 21:47:17 +0000

Our olympic squad lost respectfully yesterday to the Netherlands, our neighbor and longstanding rival. The match was played at Cristal Arena in front of 6,859 spectators. It was Belgium’s last preparation match for the olympics. We lost by a score of 0-1 against the U-21 Euro champions. Roy Makaay scored in the 84th minute for the Dutch. Belgium had so many chances to score in the first half thanks to Vertonghen, De Mul, and Dembélé. Unfortunately, we failed to capitalize on the opportunities. The Dutch were very dangerous in the second half, but the Belgians still had more chances. A frustrating loss for the young Belgians. It could have been worse, however, and the squad looks good for the olympics. I think we can make it out of our group of the host nation (China), Brazil, and New Zealand. Hup België! Allez Les Diablotins!

Match Facts:
Line-ups:
Belgium : Ma-Kalambay, De Roover (46′ Ciman), Kompany (73′ Rossini), Vermaelen (46′ Simaeys), Pocognoli (46′ Mulemo), Fellaini, Vertonghen, De Mul (46′ Vanden Borre), Haroun (66′ Odjidja-Ofoe), Martens (79′ Lamah), Dembélé

Netherlands : Velthuizen (46′ Vermeer), Zuiverloon (46′ De Guzman), Marcellis, Jaliens, Pieters, Beerens (46′ Sno), Maduro, Bakkal, Emanuelson (46′ Babel), Sibon (74′ Drenthe), Makaay

Yellow Cards : Sibon, Pieters, Ciman, Mulemo.

Goals: 84′ Makaay

Updated FIFA Rankings: Belgium Drops To 49

julien — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 23:47:55 +0000

Last Wednesday FIFA released the updated FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking. Belgium dropped 3 spots in the rankings from 46 to 49. Their recent friendly loss to Italy, which ended 1-3, hurt the Rode Duivels’ rank. Really a good result from that encounter was not to be expected. We faced arguably the best national team in the world. They did not let their best players sit out either and the match acted as their Euro 2008 warm-up match. The home fan support surely aided their game as well. I think we were lucky to score a single goal against the tough Italian defense. They really are a talented team, and I was shocked to see them go down so easy today in their opening Euro 2008 match today against Belgium’s rival, Netherlands, 3 to 0. Belgium’s upcoming opponents are ranked 20 (Turkey), 121 (Estonia), 78 (Armenia), and 67 (Bosnia-Herzegovina). I think we can easily beat all of those teams except Turkey. Turkey will be a tough team to face in the 2010 World Cup Qualifying. I have been looking at them closely during this year’s Euro tournament. Their offense looked weak against Portugal on Saturday. Nevertheless, the Turks played an experienced and stacked Portugal side. I felt that they ably held their own that match. It really could have been a lot worse considering what the Portuguese brought to the table. The 2008 Olympic Games are coming up soon this summer and Belgium has qualified for the football event. They are in Group C with China, Brazil, and New Zealand. That will be a tough group for the Belgians. Obviously, Brazil in any event is no pushover. Then we also have the host nation that will want to prove themselves at home. The Rode Duivels’ first olympic match is against Brazil on August 7th. I will make sure to keep you guys updated with the Rode Duivels in the Olympics.

Belgium’s Ranking
Ranking Team Total points Change in points
48 Iran 603 3
49 Belgium 600 -3
50 Tunisia 594 3

FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking Top 10
Ranking Team Total points Change in points
1 Argentina 1559 0 39
2 Brazil 1513 0 -5
3 Italy 1424 0 28
4 Spain 1303 0 -20
5 Germany 1274 0 10
6 Czech Republic 1246 0 2
7 France 1143 0 -62
8 Greece 1133 0 -63
9 England 1123 2 25
10 Netherlands 1111 0 -12