Are Belgium Being Held Back?
It’s unlikely Marc Wilmots will have won over many of his critics on Monday night, after his talented Belgium side offered up a largely muddled performance against Antonio Conte’s Italy.
The warning signs for Wilmots’ dubious credentials as a first-rate manager were evident during the last World Cup, when the Red Devils wobbled to the quarter-finals; some would argue, almost entirely on the steam of the nation’s superstars, rather than the former-Bordeaux midfielder’s coaching expertise.
Now, in France, it looks as if even they won’t be able to drag him anywhere other than the departure longue of a flight home.
The most glaring problem for Belgium against the Azzurri— something to which even a tactical dunderhead like myself might raise a hand and ask: erm, are you sure about that, Marc?— was that half the players were shunted out of their regular positions.
Forcing square pegs into round holes doesn’t work; neither, it seems, does pushing your most creative player out to the right-wing. Just ask Sven-Göran Eriksson, just one of the England managers to sacrifice the artistic talents of Paul Scholes, to cater for a supposedly more effective central-midfield pairing of Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard. Kevin De Bruyne, like Scholes at Euro 2004, was wasted so far away from the action.
Questions could also be asked about the usage of Spurs pair Jan Vertonghen and Mousa Dembélé. While in one dug-out, Conte was taking maximum advantage of the already formidable defensive corps at Juventus; Buffon, Barzagli, Bonucci and Chiellini — Wilmots chose to overlook components of the Premier League’s most frugal backline, in favour of putting Vertonghen at left-back. Thomas Vermaelen, who barely featured for Barcelona last season, filled in as Toby Alderweireld’s centre-back partner.
Elsewhere, Moussa Dembele, a strong candidate for Spurs’ Player of the Year last season, was thrust so far out of position, he ended up sitting on the bench for the entire game. In his stead, renowned creative whiz, Marouane Fellaini, with all the subtlety of a hydraulic jackhammer.
Look, Fellaini has his uses as a player and there’s no denying he can be a worthwhile contingency plan, if you’re looking to shake things up. But with the talent at Belgium’s disposal, he really should only be a break glass in case of emergency grade option. When all’s lost and elbows, unruly hair and a mad chest-trap game are the only things that can save you.
I’ll echo the words of Jermain Jenas before the game:
Marc Wilmots might need to have a rethink. Right now it feels like he’s in possession of a priceless Ming dynasty vase, but he’s using it as a spittoon.
