Euro 2020 preview: Eden Hazard returns for mighty Belgium’s Group B challenge

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This article was published 05/06/2021 (1891 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Euro 2020 kicks off Friday, a year later than expected but no less anticipated. Twenty-four soccer teams will vie to be the continent’s best over the month-long tournament, held in 11 cities across Europe for the first time in the competition’s 60-year history. We’re previewing one group each day. Today: Group B

All eyes will be on Belgium to see if the so-called “golden generation” can make good on winning a major tournament before its ever-closing window shuts.

The Belgians have been perennial favourites in recent years, and reached the semifinals of the 2018 World Cup. Their stars are many, but aging. If playmakers Eden Hazard and Kevin De Bruyne, forward Romelu Lukaku and goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois hope to lift a trophy together, now is the time. Manager Roberto Martinez will need to rotate through his preferred 3-4-3 formation with Hazard, De Bruyne and central midfielder Axel Witsel all coming off or still dealing with injuries.

Belgium’s toughest competition should be Denmark. The Danes have developed a mostly possession-based game and better attacking flow on the wings under manager Kasper Hjulmand, who took over from Age Hareide in 2020. Hjulmand is known for changing formations in-game. Opponents beware, lest they get burned.

Finland makes its first appearance at a major tournament with a core that has been together since the under-21 European championship in 2009. They play like it. Their organization runs deep and makes them hard to break down. A dream scenario for Finland would be a performance like Wales in 2016, when team spirit and never-say-die attitude earned a trip to the semifinals. More likely is a spoiler role thanks to their unwavering, sometimes frustrating, style of play.

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The last five years have been a roller coaster for Russia, which finished last in its group at Euro 2016 but advanced to the World Cup quarterfinals on home soil two years later. That high was short-lived with a few big-name players lost in the wake of that 2018 tournament. One of the only qualifiers to rely on the long ball, Russia’s direct play and crossing to tall strikers such as six-foot-six Artem Dzyuba offers the best chance at long-shot success.

• Player to watch: How Hazard starts could indicate how far Belgium goes. The 30-year-old won the Silver Ball as the second-best player at the 2018 World Cup, but has struggled to impress at the club level since his big-money transfer from Chelsea to Real Madrid in 2019. Injuries and underachievement kept him out of Belgium’s starting 11 for 18 months, but the captain has earned another shot. The club has to hope he will stay healthy, but Martinez has faith, saying recently that he looks forward to the return of Hazard at his best in the coming weeks.

• Game you can’t miss: Belgium and Denmark have gone head-to-head twice in the past year in Nations League play. The Belgians won both times by two-goal margins. Denmark knows that keeping up with Europe’s elite is a must to go deep in the tournament, so a result against the Red Devils in a lower-pressure round-robin situation would set a good tone. Belgium was stunned by Wales in the quarterfinals of Euro 2016. Kickoff is at noon on June 17.

• Prediction: Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Russia

Laura Armstrong is a Star sports reporter based in Toronto. Follow her on Twitter: @lauraarmy