Theirs was supposed to be the ‘golden’ Belgium generation that won it all.
From Manchester City icons to Chelsea greats, and from multi-million pound transfers to countless Champions League and Premier League titles, Belgian players have lit up the stage in the club game over the past decade, but at international level it has been a different story.
And as Kevin De Bruyne and Romelu Lukaku line up for their sixth and potentially final international tournament when they face Slovakia in Frankfurt they might be wondering where all their old pals have gone. The answers vary.
After his glittering playing career Vincent Kompany has been relegated with Burnley but promoted to Bayern Munich. Eden Hazard got his dream move to Real Madrid and then barely set foot on the Bernabeu pitch. He only turns out at Socceraid these days.
Even Thibaut Courtois, who famously doesn’t see eye-to-eye with De Bruyne, isn’t in Germany despite his Champions League final appearance two weeks ago, having not been deemed fit enough by Belgium boss Domenico Tedesco following a season on the sidelines.
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These are players who were at the scene of the crimes when Belgium froze in defeat to Wales in the quarter-finals at Euro 2016, flattered to deceive against France in the semis of the 2018 World Cup and barely laid a glove on Italy at Wembley in the last eight of the Euros three years ago.
Throw in a dismal group stage exit at the last World Cup which did for Roberto Martinez and it all feels more olden generation than golden generation. Indeed, De Bruyne himself even said that the team were “too old” as they crashed out in Qatar following a defeat to Morocco and a draw with Croatia.
This time around both he and Lukaku will be looking elsewhere for inspiration at a time when their own futures are uncertain.
Both players are being linked with lucrative transfers to Saudi Arabia and neither is doing much to quieten the noise, with Lukaku - still incredibly on Chelsea’s books - positively welcoming it.
Hope could be around the corner for the ageing pair though. Or specifically on the wings.
Belgium have been relying on Lukaku’s goals for so long, but in Leandro Trossard they have a forward who has scored 11 for Arsenal this calendar year, and someone who relished taking on the goalscoring burden in the Premier League title race.
That was a race won by Manchester City, giving Jeremy Doku a first title in his maiden season in England, and although his end product can sometimes be lacking he is a dangerous player to have on your side. Johan Bakayoko, the PSV Eindhoven title winner linked with a move to Liverpool, is another.
Are they a new golden generation? They’d probably want to be called anything but given what happened to the last one.
But as Belgium begin a group stage that they should win, De Bruyne and Lukaku have got enough helping hands to make their potential last dance a memorable one.
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