National coach Tedesco surprised with four newcomers in the Red Devils selection: “They have to take up the challenge”

The biggest surprise in the selection we find in the defense. There we find Olivier Deman of Cercle Brugge and Ameen Al-Dakhil of Burnley. Remarkable, because Tedesco was not going to call any promises for the Red Devils. “They have to rise to the challenge. There is no special plan for him to combine the Red Devils with the European U21 Championship,” the national coach said at his press conference. Al-Dakhil still played at Sint-Truiden at the start of the season, but made the switch to Vincent Kompany’s Burnley in January. “He is doing very well at Burnley. He plays with a lot of personality and since we want Zeno Debast to gain tournament experience with the reserves, he seemed like a good replacement”, says Tedesco.

The national coach also sees a lot of potential in Cercle Brugge’s left wingback, Olivier Deman. “He gives a lot every game. I observed him during his warm-up, about fifteen minutes. He did 25 sprints in it. That says enough about his character. Moreover, he also has excellent technique.”

Trésor can also finally prepare for the Red Devils. Tedesco left the brand new Player of the Season in the Pro League at home in the previous qualifying matches, but now the national coach is completely convinced. “Mike has had a fantastic season with Genk. He broke the assists record and I look forward to hosting him and seeing him at work with the national team.” The Genk player replaces Leandro Trossard who is not ready to play due to a minor operation.

Return to Alderweireld?

At the press conference, Toby Alderweireld’s statement – “Who knows if Tedesco asks, I’ll be back.” – not left unnoticed. Tedesco had an interesting answer to Alderweireld’s statement. “I have thought about his proposal. I saw him at work against Genk, where he played well. Yesterday I texted Toby asking if he really meant what he said. It could also be because of the euphoria. He replied to me that it will not be for this month but maybe in the future. The next selection is for September, then we’ll see, but the door is always open for him.”

The two names we can definitely expect against Austria and Estonia are Kevin De Bruyne and Romelu Lukaku. On Saturday, the BFFs will face each other in the final of the Champions League, which raised some doubts whether the national coach would not give them a rest. “I am certainly aware of their situation, but the qualifiers are hugely important matches. That is why I can say that they will make minutes anyway.”

Strikingly more players from the Jupiler Pro League

Everyone still remembers. The first selection of Tedesco where almost no player from the Belgian league was to be seen. “It goes without saying that it is an advantage if you play in a tougher competition like the Premier League and have to fight against top players every week,” Tedesco explained at the time. Now there are enough names to represent the Jupiler Pro League with Mike Trésor, Hans Vanaken, Jan Vertonghen, Arnaud Bodart and Olivier Deman. “I was able to analyze the players in the Belgian league longer. For example, I saw a great improvement in the form of Hans Vanaken. I now give the chance to some other players to show themselves.”

During the selection of Jan Vertonghen, many questions were asked by the journalists on the spot. They mainly addressed the long break of the Red Devil by missing the Europe Play-offs of Anderlecht. “It is true that it is not an ideal situation, let that be clear. The first weeks the emphasis was on the treatment of his ankle. He has been working in the gym in Tubize for the past few weeks, so I speak to him every day. We will do our best to get him in good shape,” said the national coach.

In addition to Trossard and Casteels, Amadou Onana is also not in the selection due to groin problems. An injury he sustained only yesterday.