The first matchday of qualifiers for the 2022 World Cup saw Belgium take on Wales at the King Power at Den Dreef. As was expected, Belgium recorded an easy victory, beating Wales 3-1 through goals scored by Kevin De Bruyne, Thorgan Hazard, and Romelu Lukaku.
With Euro 2020 (yes, it will still bear that name) approaching and the World Cup just over a year and a half away, there are two more chances for far and away the greatest era in the history of Belgium's national team to culminate in a first-ever tournament victory. After years of near-misses, doing so would be especially sweet.
Considering Belgium's current standing within the international football landscape today, the national team's record prior to the 2014 World Cup is often overlooked. Up to that point, it had been utterly abject. Only once had Belgium even made it to the quarterfinals of a World Cup; they had even failed to qualify for the prior two.
Belgium's record at the European Championships told a similar story. After losing to West Germany in the 1980 final, Belgium would not advance beyond the group stage again until 2016. In fact, from 1984 to 2012, Belgium did not even qualify for a single European Championship; the only one in which they participated was Euro 2000, which they co-hosted with the Netherlands.
Times have clearly changed; players such as Lukaku, De Bruyne, Eden Hazard, and Thibaut Courtois have turned Belgium into one of the world's football powerhouses over the past seven years or so. However, seemingly burdened by the weight of history, they have frequently faltered on the biggest stages when the lights have been at their brightest.
The most glaring example of this was their 2018 World Cup semifinal against France. This was a match which many considered to be the tournament's "true" final; the winner would almost certainly go on to beat Croatia in the final. With a potential World Cup title on the line, Belgium could not reach their peak level of play; with a 1-0 loss, they let perhaps their best chance to win a major international tournament slip through their fingers.
There is a possibility that redemption may come at Euro 2020. Belgium have been placed into a relatively simple group containing Denmark, Finland, and Russia. None of these teams should pose them much of a threat. Unfortunately for Belgium, there is a possibility that their first knockout-stage match could be a difficult one. Assuming they finish first in Group B, Belgium have a 1 in 4 chance of playing against the third-placed team of Group F in the round of 16.
Ordinarily, this would not be an issue, but this is not the case in this tournament. Group F is the "Group of Death" containing Portugal, France, and Germany. Not only are these teams all good enough to beat Belgium; they also happen to be the three most recent European teams to win a major international tournament. Given this fact, it is not unimaginable that Belgium might wilt under the pressure while these teams might not.
After the European Championships, Belgium will play against France in the UEFA Nations League semifinals in October. Victory against Les Bleus would then see Belgium face off against Italy or Spain in the final. With just two wins required, this could very well be Belgium's best chance at a title. But once again, the question remains: can Roberto Martínez's team keep their composure and overcome what seems to be a major mental block?
Not much information can necessarily be gleaned from Belgium's results in the World Cup qualifiers. As a top seed, they were placed in Pot 1 and thus handed a relatively easy draw. Wales, the Czech Republic, Belarus, and Estonia should all be dispatched without much difficulty. Once again, the real test will come at the tournament itself in Qatar. However, after coming up short in 2014, 2016, 2018, and potentially twice more in 2021 and with many of their core players near the end of their peak years at that point, there may at that point be more questions over the Belgium team than ever before.
It is for these reasons that perhaps no other contender is under the pressure to win next year's World Cup than Belgium. If they do not rise to the occasion, that could be their last chance gone.
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