Red DevilsThe place in the Final Four is almost certain for the Orange, but it will be a prestige battle in Amsterdam on Sunday anyway. The painful 1-4 in June in mind, Belgium is out for rehabilitation. But who has the best team and who has the best national team coach? A question that VTM analysts Jan Mulder and Marc Degryse were presented with in the studio last night.
Jan Vertonghen just after Belgium – Wales, when asked if he is out for revenge on Sunday. “The 1-4 has hit hard, that match also made the difference in this Nations League. That night is still in the back of my mind, yes…”
But whether Belgium can also win in the ArenA – let alone with three goals difference as is necessary to become first in the group and play the Final Four next summer? Degryse: “What the Netherlands does not have are Courtois and De Bruyne.” To which Mulder cynically says: “We have Pasveer, Marc.” Degryse: “Yes, she is 38 years old. Still a big difference.” Mulder: “But Courtois is a keeper, he is not that decisive. De Bruyne, the Netherlands does not have him… but Frenkie de Jong may not be that bad either.”
In his choice between Martínez and Van Gaal, Mulder resolutely opts for the Catalan. “He has guided the Red Devils well for the past four or five years, however you turn it. Van Gaal is more someone who strokes your hair, sometimes to the point of rudeness against journalists. He knows it all very well himself… that may be true, but you don’t have to say that about yourself.”
“De Bruyne simply determines everything”
And whether De Bruyne was top notch last night. Belgium – Wales, that was 45 minutes of fun with one player: Kevin De Bruyne. This is often called a masterclass. But it was a masterclass, how De Bruyne scored wonderfully before the fifteen minutes and afterwards offered Batshuayi the 2-0. And then he had bad luck with a ball against the post. In the VTM studio, Jan Mulder and Timmy Simons gave the praises at half time. After the break it all became a bit less, Wales scored the connecting goal (2-1) and KDB got another round of applause.
“Before the match I thought I’d keep an eye on Debast and Eden Hazard, but of course you can’t look next to this De Bruyne. He was rock solid,” said Mulder. “A joy to watch. What a class, in so many different things too. He was into it, yes. How he surprised the keeper at that 1-0 by kicking the ball right away… Not the speed of the ball, but the speed of the kicking was deadly for that goalkeeper.”
Whether this De Bruyne has become even better at 31, Timmy Simons presenter Maarten Breckx wanted to know. “He just decides everything. The pace, the acceleration, when we put pressure and the way in which… He is even more the boss of every team. Praying that nothing happens to him. He makes the others better.”
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