Red Devils: between glass ceiling, lack of experience and frustration

Belgium failed to qualify for the World Cup final. The Red Devils lost to France (1-0) on Tuesday in St. Petersburg. The men of Roberto Martinez will console themselves with the match for 3rd place against England on Saturday at 16:00 in St. Petersburg.

The Red Devils do not understand. Conditioned to win a major title, the "golden generation" of Belgium has again failed, this time in the semifinals of the World against France. The lack of experience – the lack of selection in major tournaments between 2002 and 2014 – however, appears as an explanation.

Before the critical review, the bitterness of being close to a World Cup final. " Of the four teams in semi-finals, we are perhaps the strongest team, but in football it is not always the best that will win, sometimes it's the details that decide and, today, it was in their favor ", regretted Thibaut Courtois.

" The frustration is there because we lose against a team that is not better than us ", still blasted the doorman of the Devils. What to pbad for a bad loser on social networks …

Because this is not the opinion of everyone. " France was the most convincing (in this World), I bet on a French victory at the World Cup ", said Wednesday Cafu, former international Seleçao, 1994 world champion and 2002, on the sidelines of a FIFA event in Moscow.

If Belgium, the best attack of the World Cup-2018, impressed thanks to its ambitious offensive game, the France of Didier Deschamps reminded him, with the experience of his failure in the final of the Euro-2016, a pragmatic strategy remained the best guarantee of success

Should we pay the failures to learn how to win? " (It was) the year where ever for them ", underlines with AFP Jean-François De Sart, the former coach of the Belgian Espoirs, which saw the birth of the generation Kompany during the Euro-2007 and the OG-2008.

The same fate as the generation Robben and Messi?

" What we can only regret is that 'they have not seen other tournaments earlier like in 2012 or 2010, this is the big disappointment we can have "he added, in reference to their lack of experience

Thibaut Courtois, Kevin De Bruyne, Eden Hazard, Dries Mertens, Romelu Lukaku … The best European clubs are tearing them away, other European nations envy them. But like the Lionel Messi generation in Argentina or Arjen Robben with the Netherlands, the incredible Belgian armada gives the impression of being condemned to places of honor.

Even the exploit against Brazil (2-1), ten years after failing to glean a bronze medal against Marcelo's Seleçao at the Beijing Olympics, did not trigger

" The World Cup fails not the individualities, or the great talents, only the teams that work hard as a group and who have a winning mentality ", nevertheless had not stopped hammering Roberto Martinez.

The 3rd place … and the Euro 2020 in sight

The small country wedged between Germany and France can however hope finally to reap the fruit of " 10-15 years of hard work ] "dixit Martinez, at the Euro-2020 after being absent from all major tournaments between 2002 and 2014 (three Euro s and two World Cups.)

" In two years, there is still a new European Championship, where still full of Devils will be in top form, and I hope that again we will to make a beautiful course. From September, we will start thinking about that "said Courtois.

If Vincent Kompany (32) or Marouane Fellaini (30) are likely to announce their international retirement, Hazard and De Bruyne, only 27 years old, did not say their last word, while their "little brothers" Michy Batshuayi (24), Adnan Januzaj (23) and Yuri Tielemans (21) are already ready to take over. torch.

At the bottom of the hole in June 2007 in the image of its 71st place in the FIFA rankings, Belgium must first record its rebirth by going for the 3rd place, synonymous with the best result of its history in a World Cup.

" I want to finish strong Saturday to take the 3rd place. I think we deserve it, we will do everything to have it. We have to do it, for us, so that in 20-30 years, we say that in Russia we played a good tournament ", hoped Courtois.

" Maybe, in 20-30 years old, there will again be great talents in Belgium who will say 'We must beat the course of the' Devils 'in Russia' "he added. 2018 a success, compared to the disillusions of the World Cup-2014 and Euro-2016, where they failed in the quarter-finals.