Failed again! In search of a first victory in official competition against their French neighbors since 1981, the Red Devils will still have to wait. However, this time Belgium has long believed in the feat at the Stade de France. Thanks to a goal from Dodi Lukebakio shortly after the half-hour mark, Mark van Bommel’s men actually led until the start of the last quarter of an hour.
But after Désiré Doué’s equalizer, the Belgians collapsed, conceding no less than four goals in the space of 14 minutes. Even more than the magnitude of this seventh defeat in a row, it is this total renunciation in the final minutes which went down badly across Quiévrain. In the press and on social networks, where the supporters did not spare the Red Devils.
The Belgian editorialists did not mince their words in the face of this black hole at the end of the meeting. For The evening, the team literally gave up: “It’s no longer a setback, it’s a shipwreck. Conceding four goals in quick succession constitutes professional misconduct for internationals. » RTBF evokes a physical and psychological collapse, insisting on “the shame of having liquefied as soon as the French bench accelerated”.
Each tricolor wave carried by Doué, Cherki and Olise hammered home the Belgian inability to react, transforming a potential benchmark match into a proper correction.
“A lack of respect for the jersey”
On X (formerly Twitter) and fan forums, there was also indignation. “Losing against France is still okay. But to be humiliated and take a 4-1 in 15 minutes is an absolute shame, a lack of respect for the jersey,” cursed a supporter at the final whistle. Another widely relayed tweet summed up the general feeling: “At this level, it’s no longer even fatigue, it’s abandonment of one’s position. It’s shameful”
For his part, Mark van Bommel wanted to retain the positive.
“ When you work for two weeks and you see to what extent the instructions are applied during the match, it’s a real shame to have this last quarter of an hour, regretted the Dutchman. But overall, if we put together the four meetings, there were many more positives than negatives. Let’s not get stuck on this last quarter of an hour in France. »
