DOHA, Qatar — Belgium had to win to make it to the last 16, and with the qualification on the line, Roberto Martinez, the Belgium head coach, made some big calls in his starting lineup. He dropped captain Eden Hazard and chose not to start Romelu Lukaku.
For Croatia, a draw was enough so it was about managing the game in the best way. They thought they had a penalty before VAR intervened for an offside and only conceded one chance to their opponents in the first half.
Martinez sent Lukaku on at half-time with the mission to change the game and qualify his team. He could and should have done it with two big chances missed. This was not Lukaku’s World Cup or Belgium’s.
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Rapid reaction
1. What’s next for the golden generation?
This was supposed to be their last dance! This World Cup in Doha was the last time they could all get together after ten years as a group in big competitions and try to finally win a trophy. Things turned sour though. This has been a dreadful tournament on and off the pitch. Belgium have showed a terrible image of themselves with poor performances, collectively and individually, tensions, controversy and negative headlines.
The future of Roberto Martinez, who is out of contract, seems far away from Brussels. Jan Vertonghen and Dries Mertens are 35 and this will be the end of them and probably also for 33-year-olds Toby Alderweireld and Axel Witsel.
Eden Hazard, the captain, has gone through this World Cup like a ghost. Even if he is only 31, he might have a long think about his international future. It is a sad ending of what has been a wonderful story for many years, but it is time to start rebuilding. The process should have started a while ago but Martinez stayed too loyal to his golden generation. And they all paid for it in this tournament.
