Wales, the only British team left in the tournament, face a Belgian side rearing up to its full height.
As Gareth Bale waxes lyrical – rather hopefully, one might add – that Wales might be Belgium’s “bogey team”, Belgium’s Michy Batshuayi is having a medical in London. Marc Wilmots’ team have looked like a coherent band of superstars only occasionally, and staring as they are at a quarter final against a flighty and dangerous underdog, distractions like Batshuayi’s transfer to Chelsea aren’t exactly welcome. Wales took points off Belgium twice in qualifying, and as Bale stated yesterday “We have reasons to be confident; I think we have more knowledge of Belgium than most other teams. We might even be their bogey team, though of course the situation will be a lot more pressurised in Lille.”
Bale is wise to mention the pressure, and implicit in his remark is that most of the pressure will be on Belgium. Wilmots’ team have only underachieved since coming of age, a sparkling generation of players almost too talented. The 4-0 drubbing they handed out to Hungary in the Round of 16 seems to have all but reserved a spot in the final for them – provided they have the togetherness to seize it. In reality, such assumptions rarely go unpunished, and the mental frailties of this Belgian team will be tested by an obdurate Welsh side who have fangs on the break.
Key Battle: Gareth Bale vs Rajdo Nainggollan
Wales will hope to work mainly on the break against Belgium. The Belgians have a great number of comfortable ball-playing midfielders and attackers, and so will likely dominate possession, but in Gareth Bale the Welsh possess the most potent counter-attacking dribbler in the tournament – perhaps the world – and will set up to maximise his effectiveness against a backtracking and under-staffed defence. Eden Hazard and Kevin de Bruyne are hardly known for their defensive workrates, and so if possession is turned over by Belgium, and Bale spots an avenue to hurtle down, it will probably be Roma’s Radjo Nainggollan who will be charged with offering the first line of resistance.
Belgium boss Marc Wilmots admits that Nainggolan regularly smokes.. “That’s why I gave him a room with a balcony.”? pic.twitter.com/bcwihtrx3g
— BenchWarmers (@BeWarmers) 25 June 2016
Nainggollan is a tigerish, feisty customer, but will need to rely on his positioning and – potentially – tactical fouling to slow Bale down. When Wales played England, onlookers were treated to the sight of Bale engaged in a footrace with Kyle Walker, probably the fastest player in that England squad; the way Bale breezed past him, with a sort of otherworldly ease, shows just how supreme the Welshman is as an athlete. Nainggollan will never compete with Bale in this regard, so other, more wily methods will have to be employed. The Belgian back line isn’t the quickest either, with Jan Vertonghen – a centre back by trade – playing at left back. Nainggollan will need to give them as much protection as he can.
Team News and Expected Lineups
The only injury concern, on either side, is Wales’ fretting over their captain Ashley Williams. Against Northern Ireland, Williams was involved in a shuddering collision with his teammate Jonny Williams, and only barely recovered enough to see out the match.
A shoulder injury immediately became of huge concern, but reports have indicated he has healed enough to start this quarter final. Williams is nothing if not durable, and is well-stocked in the grit department; it would have to be a malady approaching amputation to keep him out. Chris Coleman has a dilemma as to his starting striker, with Sam Vokes and Hal Robson-Kanu both with genuine claims to the place.
Belgium will likely start the group that fared so well against Hungary, with de Bruyne and Hazard flitting menacingly behind Romelu Lukaku.
Head-to-Head and Last Meeting
Wales’ overall record against Belgium is fairly level, with four wins, five losses and three draws. As they were drawn in the same qualifying group for this tournament, they have played one another twice in the last two years, with Wales winning and drawing those matches, a superb undefeated record. Coleman’s squad will draw confidence from this recent success against the Belgian stars, with the “bogey team” mind games Bale is tentatively playing clear evidence of that.
Prediction
There is still something perilous about this Belgian squad, a fragility that can’t be overlooked. There is a huge amount of pressure on them, and the chances they gave Hungary will be more sorely punished if they are also given to Wales. Wales will nick this, 1-0.
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