Belgium striker Romelu Lukaku helped his squad make history in UEFA Euro 2024, but not in the way they wanted to. Belgium fell victim to the biggest upset in Euros history Monday as the FIFA Men’s World Rankings’ third-ranked side fell victim to 48th-ranked Slovakia, 1-0.
Lukaku and the Red Devils started their Group E opener hot, creating chances and challenging Slovakia and Newcastle goalkeeper Martin Dúbravka early on. However, the Eastern Europeans answered quickly when Ivan Schranz scored on Belgian keeper Koen Casteels just seven minutes in.
From there on out, Belgium dominated the possession, owning a 61% to 39% advantage for the match. And the chances kept coming, but Belgium just couldn’t convert.
Except for Roma (via Chelsea loan) striker Lukaku, that is, who netted two goals yet became the first player in Euro history to have two goals disallowed by VAR, according to Stats Foot.
The first goal came when Lukaku knocked in an Amadou Onana header that may have gone in on its own without the striker's intervention. After the goal, though, VAR showed Lukaku’s arm and shoulder were clearly offside.
Goal No. 2 came off the board after VAR showed that an electric run by Loïs Openda started with a handball by the 24-year-old RB Leipzig winger.
In the end, Slovakia’s 1-0 lead held, and by beating a team ranked 45 spots higher in the FIFA World Rankings, this became the biggest upset in the European tournament’s history.
Euro 2024 fans go wild over Belgium-Slovakia upset
The Euro 2024 upset of the tournament definitely got social media buzzing. Most fans celebrated the joy of Slovakia, who will remind many of a plucky Iceland team back in Euro 2016 that made a run to the quarterfinals.
“Slovakia players & fans dance, united in joy, following famous win vs. Belgium,” the Men in Blazers X account posted after the game. “A wonderful scene after one of the best results in Slovakia's history. By world rankings, the biggest-ever Euro upset.”
However, other fans pointed more to Belgium bottling the match than Slovakia winning it.
“Belgium losing to Slovakia 1-0 in their EUROs 2024 opener is a new low for such a talented set of players!” Ugandan football pundit Usher Komugisha tweeted.
Whether Belgium lost it or Slovakia won it, there are plenty of questions to ask about the No. 3 team in the world after this massive loss.
What’s wrong with Belgium and Romelu Lukaku?
Once again, Belgium and (at least the tail end) of its Golden Generation are underperforming in a major tournament.
In the 2022 World Cup, Belgium went 1-1-1 in Group F and failed to make the knockout rounds, with Morocco and Croatia advancing. That came on the heels of a quarterfinal loss to Italy in Euro 2020 (played in 2021 due to COVID-19).
The Red Devils did take home third place in the 2018 World Cup but were upset by Wales in the quarterfinals of Euro 2016 before that.
And while Belgium stalwarts like Eden Hazard, Vincent Kompany, and Toby Alderweireld are now retired, the team still has plenty of headline names, both old (Kevin De Bruyne, Romelu Lukaku, Jan Vertonghen) and new (Amadou Onana, Loïs Openda, Jérémy Doku).
It may be tempting to blame the Belgium loss to Slovakia on a weakened defense and manager Domenico Tedesco deciding not to include arguably the best keeper in the world, Real Madrid’s Thibault Courtois, on the roster, it comes down to the two Belgian captains not performing up to par.
Lukaku and De Bruyne are two of the most productive and unique offensive players in the game, but for some reason, they often don’t play well together, especially in big tournaments.
While De Bruyne has orchestrated the Manchester City attack to 14 major trophies and Lukaku has scored 270 goals in professional leagues in Belgium, England, and Italy, they just can’t seem to figure it out on the international stage.
Now, if they hope to avoid an unceremonious exit in Euro 2024, they must play well and score goals (that count) against Romania on Saturday, June 22.
Follow Us
Subscribe