Belgium will not have its two most talented players in attack after being injured in the Round of 16 against Portugal
Belgian footballers Eden Hazard Y Kevin De Bruyne, injured against Portugal, do not suffer “structural damage“and it will be difficult for them to reach the Quarter finals against Italy Friday, but yeah they could be ready for a hypothetical Semifinal, said this Monday the coach of Belgium, Roberto Martinez.
“It is early, but I can communicate the initial information from the medical department. It is quite positive for both of us. They will stay with the group. They have no structural damage. We play against the clock, the game is on Friday and it is very difficult for them to arrive. We will go from day to day, “he said Martinez at a press conference.
The Spanish coach added that the Real Madrid forward and the Manchester City captain could be available for a hypothetical Semifinal, Yes Belgium beats Italy.
Martinez gave a “fifty percent” chance for the players to be recovered by Friday and added that “medical information says that if he had played in the next phase they could play.”
“De Bruyne It is the open ankle in an entry in which the ligament suffered. But it has no structural damage. Y Hazard it had a sensation in the hamstring muscles, but after the images we have seen that there is no structural damage either, “he added.
Asked if he thinks he should have retired earlier to Hazard, knowing that he arrived at the Euro 2020 touched and came from two seasons with many injuries, Martinez He pointed out that the match was “a cross, you don’t play 90 minutes, there may be an extension” and pointed out that the coaches do not work “with crystal balls.”
“You need players who are playing well and having fun and who are necessary in the game as long as the game needs them,” added the Spanish coach, who pointed out that the Real Madrid attacker was playing “the best game” he has seen in a long time. .
Martinez He also regretted the permissiveness of the arbitrators with Portugal, which in the opinion of the coach of Belgium they should have stopped the hard game of the Portuguese and could have shown Joao Palhinha red instead of yellow in the action in which he was injured De Bruyne.
Belgium, which is seen with serious options to win the Euro 2020, has lived the last weeks celebrating the good form of his scorer Romelu Lukaku, but pending the recovery of the two footballers who mark the attack of the ‘Red Devils’, who arrived between cotton wool to the concentration.
HAZARD
The 30-year-old player has dragged on for two injury-plagued seasons and reached the Belgian camp touched. The coach and the medical team designed a specific recovery plan for the footballer.
He trained first alone and played a few minutes at the end of the last friendly before the Euro 2020, against Croatia (1-0). He also came out in the last leg of the first and second day of the tournament, against Russia (3-0) and Denmark (0-2), respectively, and came to play the full third match against Finland (1-0), playing at a good level.
The Belgian captain started again against Portugal in the round of 16, but asked for the change in the 87th minute with leg problems.
OF BRUYNE
The Manchester City captain left the Champions League final on May 29 with a double fracture to his face and joined the Belgian camp a week after the rest, as planned also before the injury.
He did it after undergoing a small operation and trained alone the first week. He did not accompany the Red Devils In the first match against Russia, he continued to recover and made his second-half debut against Denmark, turning a game in which the Belgians had been besieged in the by the Nordics.
The best player of the season in the English Premier League also played the last game of the group stage against Finland as a starter for Belgium and repeated in the eleven against Portugal. But he asked for the change in the 48th minute with pain in an ankle after a tackle.
It was seen De Bruyne follow the end of the game from the stands, with ice on the left ankle, but on Monday the Federation distributed some images of the return flight in which the player, who this Monday celebrates his 30th birthday, descended the plane ladder without problems with a suitcase in each hand.
“He is a very strong player mentally. His head is very well furnished. We were all a little anxious before the news from the scan, but now he is happy and relaxed, he said. Martinez about the mood of De Bruyne.
CALENDAR UNTIL CROSSING
The Belgian Selection He will train Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday in Tubize, just outside Brussels, and will fly to Munich on Thursday.
That same day, Red Devils they will offer a press conference in the stadium and then they will train on the field where they will be measured against Italy on Quarter finals on Friday.