Let’s not fret about brilliant Belgians

Here’s a question: name some famous Belgians. Well there’s Kevin De Bruyne, Vincent Kompany, and Eden Hazard. And if that’s not enough, there’s Romelu Lukaku and Dries Mertens; not forgetting Toby Alderweireld and Thomas Vermaelen. Or Mousa Dembele, Thibaut Courtois, and Marouane Fellaini. If all goes well England will still be in with a chance of making the last 16 of the World Cup when they meet the mighty Belgians — not a line you see very often — in their final group match in exactly two weeks’ time.

England have, arguably, only one star of similar status: Harry Kane. But I’m less convinced than I was a few weeks ago that England are bound to lose this match in Kaliningrad. The Belgians are brilliant as individuals, but we don’t know how they will work as a team. Will they dissolve into internal bickering like the French in South Africa? And the World Cup can be harsh on strong-on-paper teams that are trying to break through — think of the luckless Dutch, or Spain’s many failures before their 2010 triumph.