Belgium Watch EP. 3 – How Fantasy Assets Fared During the First Friendly

Hi all! My name is Sam. I’m a Belgian journalist and FPL casual. Ever since I was little, I’ve been absolutely addicted to the Red Devils – by which I don’t mean a small club somewhere in Manchester, but the national Belgian team. In the next few weeks, I’ll be doing write-ups on the Belgian squad and its relevant Euro Fantasy assets. More specifically, you’ll learn

• Which players performed well, especially in friendly matches which not everyone watches.
• Injury news and updates, which could be very relevant in the coming weeks (Hazard – KDB – Witsel).
• Little known stats and quotes during press conferences
• Predicted line-ups

I would appreciate you all to read the first and second part in case you haven’t:
BELGIUM Euro Fantasy Watch EP. 1 – Looking Forward and ‘In my Defense’
Belgium Euro Fantasy Watch EP. 2 -Attacking Options & Injury Updates

BELGIUM-GREECE: 1-1

It was a big shock for outsiders, but not so much for people who have been following the Belgian national team for quite some time: the Red Devils struggled in their friendly game yesterday. Against Greece, the 51st placed team in the FIFA rankings, Belgium had a lot of difficulties to create chances in the second half and keep the Greek attackers at bay. The team lacked intensity and the result, a 1-1 draw, was fair. 

Roberto Martinez played with what looked like an experimental team:

As I’ve predicted in my previous posts, Yannick Carrasco, a bargain at 7.0, started the game in a very attacking position, just behind Lukaku (11.0). Thorgan Hazard (8.0) played at left wing-back, Meunier (5.5) at the right, and youngster Jeremy Doku (7.0) also just behind Lukaku. Leander Dendoncker (5.5) started as a defensive midfielder, while Dennis Praet (6.5) had some more freedom to attack. In defence, because of the absences of Vertonghen and Vermaelen, Roberto Martinez had to improvise with a backline of Denayer (4.5) – who is right-footed – on the left, Boyata (4.5) in the centre and Alderweireld (5.5) on the right. Not ideal. Courtois was given some rest for reserve goalkeeper Simon Mignolet (4.5). 

In the first minutes of the game, the Greeks should have already scored. Alderweireld gave the ball away and Mignolet prevented a goal with a very good save. Moments later, the same happened when Meunier lost the ball. After these moments, the Belgians calmed the game down and started creating some chances. Yannick Carrasco played one of his best ever games for the national team. He’s in top form with 10 goal contributions in his last 9 games for Atlético Madrid, and he added another Yesterday in a combination with Thorgan Hazard. After a loss of ball possession from the Greeks, Hazard carried the ball forward and played a quick one-two with Carrasco. Hazard tucked the ball in at the near post (making it 2 goals and 2 assists in his last 4 international games) It was only one example of many created opportunities by the duo on the left flank. As predicted in the previous post, it looks like the two will start together on the left in the opening game against Russia. Thorgan Hazard plays a bit deeper than Carrasco, but he was very present in the box on crosses from the right. From one of those crosses, Hazard should have absolutely scored his second.

On the right, Jeremy Doku was extremely lively. He dribbled past his man a few times and put in some decent crosses. I would not expect him to start against Russia or Denmark, but he looks like the perfect substitute should his team not find openings. Thomas Meunier, who’s in competition with Timothy Castagne for the important right wing-back spot, played a decent game. Castagne will normally play the Croatia game. Then, it’s pretty much a coin toss for the Russia game.

At the end of my last blogpost, I advised you to keep an eye out for the midfield players Vanaken or Praet. Martinez picked Leicester’s Dennis Praet alongside Leander Dendoncker, and he did not disappoint in the first half. He was very active and infiltrated a few times, linking up with Lukaku and Doku. He should have had an assist, but Lukaku missed from his excellent ball across. Don’t forget Praet loves a long shot as well, so he could be a differential if he plays. It seems to me that chances are slim that the starts vs Russia or Denmark, as the 90 minutes against Greece were his first in a long time. Praet kind of disappeared near the end of the game, and told the press he felt ‘exhausted’ but ‘satisfied’ with his 90 minutes.

And then there’s Lukaku. As mentioned above, he missed a great chance on a Dennis Praet pass, and could have had another goal on a through-ball by Carrasco. Overall, he looked like himself: a permanent dangerman who can always grab a goal. He was substituted at half-time for Michy Batshuayi (6.5), who was extremely disappointing. It’s looking like Benteke (7.0) will be ahead of Batshuayi in the pecking order, when Belgium needs a goal and an extra striker on the pitch.

The other attacking subs were Leandro Trossard (6.5) and Dries Mertens (9.0), who both didn’t really do much in a boring second half. Still, Mertens is absolutely nailed for the games against Russia and Denmark. But Martinez has a long history of subbing out Mertens when the attacking play doesn’t flow. Right now, Doku seems like the ideal sub for 30 minutes/game. 

CLEAN SHEETS IN JEOPARDY

The biggest issue, Yesterday, was the defence in general. The Greeks could have had 1 or 2 goals in the first half alone. Boyata and Denayer played pretty poor games. This will worry Roberto Martinez, who pointed out after the game that de defending was not good enough. Normally, Vertonghen will play on the left and Alderweireld on the right during the Euros. The question is: will Denayer keep his spot in the centre? It looks like Thomas Vermaelen (5.0), who will play in the next friendly (Sunday vs Croatia), might get his chance instead of Denayer. The big advantage for Denayer is that he’s younger and faster. Belgium plays a high line to apply aggressive pressure, which leaves the team vulnerable for counter-attacks against fast attackers. Vertonghen and Alderweireld are pretty slow, so Denayers speed is a very important factor. Boyata remains an option for that reason as well. Another big factor is the Russian striker this defence will face: Artem Dzyuba, a very tall player. Out of the three defenders in contention, Boyata is the best in aerial duels.

All of this adds to the structural problems of Belgium when they don’t possess the ball. Leander Dendoncker isn’t a natural defensive midfielder (he usually plays in defence at Wolves), but for Belgium has to shield the defence. Yesterday, he made a few poor positional decisions, leaving space for infiltrating Greek midfielders to shoot on goal. With Axel Witsel injured, it looks like Belgium can concede at any given moment. I wouldn’t bank on a clean sheet versus Denmark. Maybe against Russia, but who knows?

The Greek goal eventually came in the second half following a set piece. Belgium had it coming with sloppy build-up play and inconsistent pressure on the ball. This was, overall, a poor performance. The absence of De Bruyne, Witsel and Hazard really showed. And, what’s worrying: De Bruyne and Witsel will still be missing in the first game(s) of the tournament. While the real Eden Hazard is still somewhere in 2019.

What do fantasy managers learn from Belgium vs Greece ?

• Lukaku is still a valuable asset. He will score goals. But, and this is important: without KDB, there will be less chances for him.
• Carrasco is underpriced and plays high up the pitch. He’s on corner kicks as well.
• Thorgan Hazard looks lively and gets in good positions from his left wing-back position. He combines well with Carrasco. He looks nailed, unless his brother resurrects in the coming week. We will learn more on Sunday, but it looks unlikely that Eden starts the Russia game.
• If Praet plays alongside Tielemans against Russia, he could be a fantastic differential. But at the moment, I don’t see it happening. This side needs a real defensive midfielder, even if he’s playing as bad as Dendoncker.
• Meunier/Castagne is still very much a coin toss. I have absolutely no clue who will start against Russia. Meunier might have the edge with his height, an important factor for Martinez on set pieces. But if Castagne plays a terrific game on Sunday, things might change. It’s well known that Castagne is the best defensive wing-back in the squad.
• Denayer played a poor game and could lose his spot to Vermaelen or Boyata – although I think Denayer still has the edge at the moment. But even when he doesn’t lose his spot: Belgium just isn’t keeping clean sheets at the moment. I wouldn’t call it crazy to punt on Poulsen or Braithwaite against Belgium.

This is my current predicted line-up for the opening game against Russia. I will update after the next friendly on Sunday, against Croatia.

Belgium predicted line up vs Russia

Incase you missed our Euro Group A B, and C Analysis⬇️

Euro Fantasy Football | Group – C~ Review, Analysis, and Top Fantasy Assets
Euro Fantasy Football | Group – A~ Review, Analysis and Top Fantasy Assets
Euro Fantasy Football | Group – B ~ Review, Analysis, and Top Fantasy Assets

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Euro Fantasy Football ~ Best Defenders to Target in your MD1 Team
Euro Fantasy Football | Group – C~ Review, Analysis, and Top Fantasy Assets
Belgium Euro Fantasy Watch EP. 2 -Attacking Options & Injury Updates
BELGIUM Euro Fantasy Watch EP. 1 – Looking Forward and ‘In my Defense’
Euro Fantasy Football | Group – B ~ Review, Analysis, and Top Fantasy Assets
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