Belgium are second in Nations League A Group 4 ahead of Thursday’s matchday No. 5 fixture with Wales. The Belgians are three points off of league leader the Netherlands with just two matchdays left in the group stage.
Wales are on the verge of being relegated back to League B. The Welsh have one point from 12 points on offer and sit fourth in the group.
Preparation is 🔑. #DEVILTIME pic.twitter.com/fw71YwVCph— Belgian Red Devils (@BelRedDevils) September 21, 2022
Preparation is 🔑. #DEVILTIME pic.twitter.com/fw71YwVCph
Poland are three points ahead of Wales. An unlikely win in Brussels could send Wales into third place if Poland lose to the Dutch.
Rob Page’s Welsh are looking ahead to the World Cup in November. Wales have sacrificed the UEFA Nations League for the World Cup. Relegation back to League B won’t be seen as a disaster with the World Cup on the horizon.
Belgium couldn’t hold onto a 1-0 lead in the reverse fixture against Wales. The Belgians led after 51 minutes thanks to a goal from Youri Tielemans. Wales’ Brennan Johnson cancelled out the goal on 86 minutes to give Wales a share of the spoils.
Roberto Martinez did not call up Inter Milan’s Romelu Lukaku for the September internationals. Lukaku has appeared in just three Serie A matches for Inter, scoring one goal, but injuries have plagued him. After a poor start to the Serie A season, Martinez also left AC Milan’s Divock Origi out of the team.
Belgium go into Thursday night’s match at home with a record of 3W-2D-1L in 2022. The Red Devils are playing well, but their golden generation is ending.
The 2022-23 UEFA Nations League and 2022 World Cup are likely the final tournaments for the country’s much-heralded golden generation to win. Belgium are unbeaten in three straight matches. They outscored their last three opponents 8-2.
Wales are winless in three straight matches and were outscored 6-4. Their last three matches ended with both teams scoring goals. Even without Lukaku in the Belgium team, Wales cannot afford to give the Red Devils time to shoot.
Kevin De Bruyne headlines the top players available for Martinez this week. Martinez could start Dries Mertens in attack, but the manager has the option to play AC Milan’s Charles De Ketelaere. The forward was given the No. 9 shirt.
Gareth Bale is in the Wales squad despite playing sparingly for Los Angeles FC. Bale moved to the American team after leaving Real Madrid in June.
Wales have been scoring goals, but they won’t be able to get enough goals versus Belgium. The Belgians should win 2-1. The result will send Wales back to League B for the next edition of the Nations League.