There was a high price that Belgium paid when they beat Portugal in the last 16 of the 2020 European Cup. Two of their mainstay players, Kevin De Bruyne and Eden Hazard, were injured.
At the Estadio de La Cartuja, Monday (28/6/2021) early morning WIB, Belgium won 1-0 through Thorgan Hazard’s single goal in the 42nd minute. But a few minutes later, in the first half injury time, De Bruyne suffered an ankle injury.
A late tackle from Joao Palhinha made the Manchester City midfielder unable to continue the game. In the second half, Belgium was practically pressured by Portugal, who had 15 shots to 2.
De Bruyne when replaced by Dries Mertens due to injury. Photo: Getty Images/Jose Manuel Vidal – Pool |
The problem hasn’t ended there, it’s Eden Hazard’s turn to have a hamstring problem. He limped when replaced by Yannick Carrasco.
De Rode Duivels eventually progressed to the last eight, but the two main players up front are now doubtful against Italy in Munich on Saturday (3/7) at 02.00 CEST.
Even so, the Belgian coach Roberto Martinez did not immediately give up on this condition. He said the condition of his two players would be monitored further, to see if they could recover in time or not.
 Eden Hazard grimaced as he left the field. Photo: AFP/JULIO MUNOZ |
“It was a bad tackle (for De Bruyne), we’ll see. Now we don’t have a diagnosis. If Hazard has a muscle injury, we will monitor his condition in the next 48 hours,” Martinez said after the game, quoted by the BBC.
Both De Bruyne and Hazard actually came in unfit conditions for the 2020 European Cup. Hazard was only a substitute in Belgium’s first two group matches (against Russia and Denmark), while De Bruyne missed the first match and became a substitute in the second match. .
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