Inside Domenico Tedesco's new-look Belgium: Jeremy Doku, Man United target Lois Openda and Johan Bakayoko are the new stars - but Golden Generation veteran Romelu Lukaku is still going strong
- The players between 2014 and 2022 were highly praised but didn't win trophies
- Stars like Lukaku and Jan Vertonghen remain but Tedesco's team is mostly fresh
- Why it's a FARCE that relegated Wales could get a back-door route into Euro 2024 - Listen to the It's All Kicking Off podcast
In Kevin De Bruyne's defence, he was at least honest.
When asked in November in the thick of Belgium's group stage at the World Cup in Qatar if he thought his national team had a chance of claiming the ultimate glory in Doha, the talismanic midfield was blunt.
'No chance,' he said simply. 'We're too old'.
Instead, he cited the potential of winning the tournament four years earlier, in Russia, when the team's 'Golden Generation' was at its peak. Players like Eden Hazard, Romelu Lukaku, Vincent Kompany, and Thibaut Courtois were arguably at the very pinnacle of their game, and while De Bruyne remains one of the finest players in international football, he was certainly no worse.
Belgium's gilded side left Moscow with a bronze medal, an earlier achievement, a FIFA number one ranking in 2015, less impressive in the trophy cabinet. The death knell on the crop of players who featured during that halcyon period of the 2010s eventually sounded after a lacklustre showing in Qatar saw the team fail to qualify to the knockout rounds. Head coach Roberto Martinez was later sacked, and Hazard, Toby Alderweireld, and Axel Witsel all formally retired last summer.
![Kevin De Bruyne (pictured in 2018) ruled up the prospect of Belgium's 'Golden Generation' seeing through a last dance at the 2022 World Cup](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/03/26/12/82904063-13239789-image-a-34_1711457305212.jpg)
Kevin De Bruyne (pictured in 2018) ruled up the prospect of Belgium's 'Golden Generation' seeing through a last dance at the 2022 World Cup
![The retirement of a number of the era's key players including Eden Hazard (centre) and Axel Witsel (left) last summer called time on the era](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/03/26/12/82904111-13239789-image-a-35_1711457362585.jpg)
The retirement of a number of the era's key players including Eden Hazard (centre) and Axel Witsel (left) last summer called time on the era
![Head coach Domenico Tedesco (right) is looking to move on from the past with a team ripe with attacking talent](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/03/26/12/82903931-13239789-image-a-36_1711457367783.jpg)
Head coach Domenico Tedesco (right) is looking to move on from the past with a team ripe with attacking talent
Needless to say, the team that arrives at Wembley on Tuesday night bears little resemblance to the European big beast of old, with only a few players from those glory days clinging on to starting-XI status.
But following the appointment of Dominic Tedesco, the team's necessary overhaul has been quietly fruitful.
The side are unbeaten since the Italian manager took up the mantle in February 2023, in spite of injuries to a number of regular starters such as De Bruyne and Courtois, and they topped their European Championship group in a sticky set which included potential pitfalls Austria and Sweden.
His team is an unshowy, unfamiliar one. Rather than being stuffed with bold-faced Premier League names, his squad only features seven players from the English top-flight - and two of them are goalkeepers. There are also only seven players of the 25 in the squad with more than 20 caps to their name.
But the reborn squad could still prove a tough test for Gareth Southgate's side as they look for a statement win in their last international break before flying to Germany in June, thanks to a budding youth revolution, and the resurgence in form of a number of international stalwarts.
Tedesco himself was an ambitious appointment. The head coach is a man in a hurry, having overseen stints at Schalke, Spartak Moscow, and RB Leipzig all before the age of 36. At the last of his clubs, Tedesco helped guide the Bundesliga side to their first German Cup victory in 2022.
![The manager has overseen an unbeaten run since he was appointed in February last year](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/03/26/12/82903937-13239789-image-a-37_1711457382667.jpg)
The manager has overseen an unbeaten run since he was appointed in February last year
![Romelu Lukaku (pictured in 2018) is one of a handful of old stars still in Tedesco's squad](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/03/26/12/82904033-13239789-image-a-38_1711457387265.jpg)
Romelu Lukaku (pictured in 2018) is one of a handful of old stars still in Tedesco's squad
![The Roma forward has been in rich form for his country and was the top scorer in Euro 2024 qualifying with 14 goals](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/03/26/12/82904015-13239789-image-a-39_1711457390523.jpg)
The Roma forward has been in rich form for his country and was the top scorer in Euro 2024 qualifying with 14 goals
After carving out a ruthlessly attack-minded style of play at Leipzig, Tedesco is now able to call upon a veritable dream line-up of young, threatening talent - often lead by one of the few familiar faces left in the side.
Few players have had a more mercurial form over the last four years of their career than Belgium's all-time leading goalscorer Romelu Lukaku. But for every Twitter-stirring international howler, there has been a rich vein of form, and settled this season at Roma - where he has a more-than respectable 18 goals to his name across all competitions - the 30-year-old has more than earned his place in the squad.
Lukaku has scored 13 times under his new manager, including hitting Azerbaijan for four in the captain's armband during Belgium's lap-of-honour Euro 2024 qualifier in November. Fit and raring to face England, his inclusion in the starting XI bridges an important gap between the battle-hardiness of old and the up-and-comers.
But the Chelsea loanee has stiff competition for his place leading the line in the form of a player eyed more than once by Manchester United, Lois Openda. The Leipzig striker is in his first season at the club but showing no sign of nerves, having hit 19 Bundesliga goals - putting him fifth in the European Golden Boot race.
![Lukaku could yet find his place in the starting XI under fire from RB Leipzig striker Lois Openda](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/03/26/12/82903999-13239789-image-a-40_1711457399433.jpg)
Lukaku could yet find his place in the starting XI under fire from RB Leipzig striker Lois Openda
![Jeremy Doku is one of the nation's brightest attacking talents and regularly features in the side](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/03/26/12/82903981-13239789-image-a-41_1711457402952.jpg)
Jeremy Doku is one of the nation's brightest attacking talents and regularly features in the side
![The Manchester City starlet is only in his first season at the Etihad but already impressing](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/03/26/12/82903989-13239789-image-a-42_1711457405821.jpg)
The Manchester City starlet is only in his first season at the Etihad but already impressing
Also helping to ease the transition between old and new is De Bruyne, although the midfielder has been ruled out of this wave of friendly matches after picking up a groin strain on duty for his club.
But while one Manchester City player's absence inarguably puts Belgium at a disadvantage, another Etihad casualty has paved the way for the rise of one of the nation's brightest stars. Stepping up amid Jack Grealish's injury-strewn season, Jeremy Doku has received ample playing time under Pep Guardiola during his debut campaign in Man City sky blue, and emerged as one of the side's most lethal weapons.
Tedesco himself thanked the Cityzen's in October for their clever handling of the player, ensuring that Doku was used well but wisely as the club managed the 21-year-old's minutes.
The manager likely has a harsher view of Diego Simeone's management of another former Rennes recruit, Arthur Vermeeren, who moved to Atletico Madrid during the January window. The 19-year-old's rip-roaring form in Ligue 1 helped him not only seal the eye-catching transfer, but start to feature more in his national side.
But since starting at the Spanish side, Vermeeren has seen his playing time reduced, the teenager joining the back of the queue in a talented midfield, and featuring for just 83 minutes total over the last few months. An eyecatching performance against England, while low-stakes, could boost his chances after he started against Ireland with little pay-off.
Such is Tedesco's assurance in Doku's qualities that the player has featured in all but two of the games under his stewardship, starting four of them. The 21-year-old's versatility is another plus, with his comfort on the left wing or the right freeing up space for either Arsenal's Leandro Trossard, or PSV Eindhoven wonderkid Johan Bakayoko.
Since the 20-year-old's promotion to the Eredivisie side's senior team in 2022, Bakayoko has been one of head Peter Bosz's lynchpin players. As well as helping the side win the KNVB Cup at the end of last season, Bakayoko's involvement has kept the team on course to claiming the Eredivisie, the team currently 10 points clear at the summit of the Dutch top-flight.
Bakayoko was only handed his first call-up last June, alongside Aster Vranckx, another young player welcomed into the fold in De Bruyne's absence. Vermeeren, Anderlecht's Zeno Debast, Genoa defender Koni De Winter, and Everton's Amadou Onana round out the pack of extreme newcomers. But in the midfield, Aston Villa's Youri Tielemans adds some much needed international heft without De Bruyne.
![Johan Bakayoko received his first call-up in June last year after a dazzling season at PSV](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/03/26/12/82904261-13239789-image-m-46_1711457487486.jpg)
Johan Bakayoko received his first call-up in June last year after a dazzling season at PSV
![The player helped his side win the KNVB Cup at the end of the last campaign and PSV are ten points clear at the top of the Eredisivie this term](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/03/26/13/82904679-13239789-image-a-50_1711458092151.jpg)
The player helped his side win the KNVB Cup at the end of the last campaign and PSV are ten points clear at the top of the Eredisivie this term
But no area is more of an experience pinch point than that of No 1. One problem that Tedesco may privately be pleased that he will not have to confront in Germany is the inclusion of former Belgian No 1 Thibaut Courtois, who fell out with his national team manager in October over being passed over for the captaincy.
The Real Madrid shotstopper later gave an interview to Sporza where he claimed that he 'no longer felt appreciation from the federation', and said that Tedesco's actions had 'made something explode' within him.
Courtois had been working his way back to fitness after rupturing his ACL in August, but was forced to have another surgery just a month after returning to training in February, this time tearing the meniscus in his right knee.
In Courtois' absence, Tedesco has failed to settle on a preferred 'keeper, instead oscillating between two veterans - 31-year-old Koen Casteels of Wolfsburg and Nottingham Forest's Matz Sels - who both have fewer than ten caps to their name.
That none of the goalkeepers currently in Tedesco's thinking have more than that might give Belgium's back-line pause, but evergreen defensive general Jan Vertonghen has more than enough caps to share amongst his team-mates - a staggering 153, the most in his nation's history by a long-shot.
![Thibaut Courtois had a public falling-out with Tedesco after he wasn't awarded the captaincy](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/03/26/12/82904307-13239789-image-a-48_1711457678218.jpg)
Thibaut Courtois had a public falling-out with Tedesco after he wasn't awarded the captaincy
![Matz Sels (left) is one of a number of 'keepers in the side with limited international experience - but Jan Vertonghen (right) remains a trusty defensive marshal](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/03/26/12/82904321-13239789-image-a-47_1711457578695.jpg)
Matz Sels (left) is one of a number of 'keepers in the side with limited international experience - but Jan Vertonghen (right) remains a trusty defensive marshal
![Koni De Winter is one of a number of young defenders keen to learn from Belgium's highest-capped player](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/03/26/12/82904353-13239789-image-a-49_1711457687398.jpg)
Koni De Winter is one of a number of young defenders keen to learn from Belgium's highest-capped player
Nor is a leaky defence an issue as things stand, with Belgium having conceded just five goals under Tedesco's stewardship, even in the face of a revolving-door of players as the manager seeks to blood newcomers De Winter, Debast, and Werder Bremen's Olivier Deman.
While friendlies can be hard to parse - or at least, England supporters will hope they are after Saturday's limp showing against Brazil - Southgate's side will get a glimpse of team that will hope to meet them in the knockout stages of this summer's tournament.
Without the pressure of an expectation-ladened nickname holding them back, Tedesco's squad could yet prove that there's life after a once-in-a-lifetime generation.