Belgium Narrowly Advances to Face France: Red Devils’ Missed Opportunities in Scoreless Draw with Ukraine
Belgium had to settle for second place in Group E after their clash with Ukraine ended without goals, prepping them for a face-off against France in the coming knockout rounds.
Despite several crystal chances, Tedesco’s squad couldn’t turn their efforts into goals, resulting in Ukraine’s exit based on goal difference with all teams in the group tied in points.
Romania advanced as group leaders after their draw with Slovakia, thanks to a more favorable goal tally, while Belgium edged into second place through a better goal difference.
Romelu Lukaku nearly marked his scoring debut early in the game after a setup by Kevin De Bruyne, yet his shot didn’t challenge Anatolii Trubin in goal.
The Red Devils dominated play but couldn’t transform their possession into top-notch opportunities, only coming close with a creative set-piece from De Bruyne.
On quick counters, Ukraine threatened and almost scored when Roman Yaremchuk’s cross almost found Artem Dovbyk close to goal.
De Bruyne and Lukaku tried again after the break, yet the result was the same; Belgium’s leading scorer sent a weak shot straight to the keeper.
Substituting Yannick Carrasco injected vigour into the Belgian attack, his powerful strike requiring a smart save from Trubin as they pushed for victory.
Towards the end, it was Ukraine who nearly scored, Ruslan Malinovskyi’s inventive corner kick nearly catching Koen Casteels off guard.
Despite both teams’ efforts, neither could clinch the decisive goal, leaving Belgium to contemplate a challenging upcoming match against the seasoned champions, France, in Dusseldorf on Monday.
Data Debrief: Red Devils’ Scoring Drought
Belgium’s inability to utilize their numerous chances saw them notch only four shots on target from 10 attempts, falling short of their expected goals (xG) by 0.28.
Continued frustration plagues Lukaku as he remains goalless at Euro 2024, despite having the most shots and shots on target alongside another teammate; his finishing needed more polish.
