The Red Devils face Slovakia this Monday to launch their Euro 2024. A meeting that intrigues our RTL Sports Jury, which prefaces this meeting 24 hours before kick-off.
We won’t have to wait much longer before seeing the Red Devils at Euro 2024. Our national team will begin its tournament on June 17, from 6 p.m., with a match against Slovakia. As with every Belgium match, we asked our RTL Sports Jury to preface the match.
“Something is happening”
For Alexandre Braeckman, there is no reason to worry. “I’m pretty confident to be very honest”even says our journalist. “Something good has been happening around this national team since the start of the rally. We feel that we are ready, that the young people want to do something and that the older players have fulfilled their role as managers well”he then estimates.
So many elements that seem to give him confidence. “I don’t see too much danger on the Slovak side, after all, you can never be too careful. Honestly, I feel it quite well”, he concludes. An opinion that Vincenzo Ciuro, the head of sports at RTL Belgium, partially shares. “I am curious to see how this new generation will take up the torch from this golden generation. They are talented, but young, inexperienced. They will experience their first major tournament and I am curious to see how they will respond to the pressure of this group stage”, he explains.
“We have to start right away”believes Silvio Proto for his part. “We have no choice, you have to gain confidence, you have to start well. You are going to have possession, you have to take the field as a conqueror, with a lot of determination. We are the favorites, we have to take the lead. game on our account”then details the former Red Devil, who is not worried before this match.
The key to the match
Silvio Proto is confident, but he remains cautious, believing that Slovakia should not be seen as an easy opponent. Above all, he wants to be reassured by the defense, which will have to manage the opposing offensive reconversions. Which reassures him, obviously. “It’s a team that plays with a compact block and a lot of aggression, with players who go quickly on the counter-attack”, analyzes the former goalkeeper. For him, the Belgian defenders should be able to get by. “I’m reassured when I see the defense, because we don’t have slow people. That scares me less than if we had played with Witsel or Vertonghen with 4 behind. If we play with 4 with Debast, Castagne etc, you still have speed”, he rejoices. He expects Belgian domination, but believes that covering space will be THE key to the match.
For Vincenzo Ciuro, it is the defense of the Red Devils which will have to respond and reassure for this first meeting of the tournament. “Be careful with the defense, which will be quite experimental and inexperienced”underlines our commentator. “Apart from Castagne, that’s only 35 caps combined. It’s very little, but for Debast, De Cuyper and Casteels to demonstrate that they have the international level, it will be a first real test”he then specifies, admitting to hoping for a rapid return of certain captains, like Jan Vertonghen or Axel Witsel.
For Alexandre Braeckman, a Slovak will actually be at the heart of the debates: Stanislav Lobotka. The Napoli midfielder is an important player and according to our journalist, his case will have to be managed particularly well. “If he is blocked well, a priori, in offensive terms, they will have some gaps, if we block him well, it will go well”he points out, estimating that Belgium will also have to combine well on the wings to create spaces for Romelu Lukaku.
The player to follow
For Vincenzo Ciuro, there is another obvious fact. “Kevin De Bruyne!”exclaims our sports chief. “We left him with the Red Devils during this disappointing World Cup in Qatar, where ‘KDB’ was complaining and was annoyed by the level of his teammates and by the quality of this Belgian team. He is coming off a season a not very special, long injured but often decisive. That’s the paradox of this Belgian team, which remains our best element, that’s a certainty.he continued.
Silvio Proto also appoints our midfield maestro. “He will have to take the team behind him and impose the tempo in possession“, judges the former Red Devil, who also relies on Onana for his management of moments without the ball. Finally, for Alexandre Braeckman, it is Romelu Lukaku who can be the key element of the meeting. “He’s our kind of unofficial captain.”says our journalist. “He is a perfect player to break the Slovakian barrier, he can launch his tournament, assume his status, as he has already done in other tournaments”he explains, also pointing out Doku as a powerful weapon. “Against him, the Slovaks will dance for a few minutes and it will be pleasant to see,” he jokes.
Answer, of course, on June 17 from 6 p.m.!
RTL Sports Euro 2024 Jury Red Devils
