Scotland 0-4 Belgium: The Belgians run through Scots

Following the conclusion of the World Cup, many fans were left to wonder whether or not Belgium would fade away from relevancy at the top of international football. If this result is anything to go by, though, they’ve got no reason to worry. The WC semi-finalists tore through Scotland tonight at Hampden Park, proving that they’re still a force to be reckoned with as we look ahead to UEFA Euro 2020.

Starting well

The Scots announced a somewhat weakened line-up in comparison to the Belgians, who ensured that the majority of their main stars got some playing time in this friendly. The hosts are still getting used to having Alex McLeish in charge of the national team, but judging by what we’ve seen so far, it seems as if he’ll do well to last throughout the duration of his contract.

With that being said they did start well against the third placed World Cup team, to the point where it seemed as if they were on equal footing for a short while. Alas, that didn’t last all that long, with Romelu Lukaku pouncing on a mistake at the back to give Belgium the edge heading into half time.

The collapse

With 45 minutes remaining, though, it still felt like the Scots were in the game, but once they came out for the second half it quickly became evident that they’d given up on securing a result. Eden Hazard doubled Belgium’s advantage before Michy Batshuayi grabbed himself a nice brace, with Scotland’s defensive errors shining through for all to see once again.

That’s going to be one of the biggest areas they need to fix in the next few weeks and months because if they don’t, they’ll really struggle to compete at the highest level of international football. Belgium, on the other hand, will be 100% focused on trying to get their hands on some silverware before their golden generation run out of time.

Match Report

Scotland: Gordon (6), Souttar (5.5), Mulgrew (6), Tierney (5.5), Fraser (6), McGinn (6), McDonald (5.5), Robertson (6), McGregor (6), Armstrong (6), Griffiths (6)

Belgium: Courtois (6.5), Boyata (6.5), Kompany (6), Vertonghen (6.5), Castagne (6.5), Tielemans (6), Dembele (6), T.Hazard (6.5), Mertens (6.5), Lukaku (7), E.Hazard (7)

Goals: Lukaku, Hazard, Batshuayi x2

Yellow Cards: N/A

Red Cards: N/A