Brilliant Belgians comfortably press Panama into submission

Concacaf side put in solid first-half performance

Belgium's Romelu LukakuCredit: Francois Nel

Belgium 3
Mertens 47, Lukaku 69, 75
Panama 0

Three things we learned...

1Belgium's individual flair remains their greatest strength
It took a moment of magic from Dries Mertens to break the deadlock against a stubborn Panama side and few goals could have better epitomised Belgium's greatest strength.

The follow-up goals involved good link-up play between Romelu Lukaku and the creative midfielders behind him, but despite the convincing victory, Belgium still look more like 11 individuals than a compact unit.

That is by no means a criticism of Roberto Martinez's side. Lukaku's pace and physicality, Kevin De Bruyne's pinpoint passing and Mertens's great ball control and excellent long-range shooting all rendered the Red Devils a dangerous outfit.

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2Cards likely for Panama in England game
A red card is yet to be awarded at this year's World Cup but Panama appeared to be on a mission to change that.

Five players were booked for the Concacaf nation, who were clumsy in committing a total 18 fouls all over the pitch as they attempted to keep tabs on Belgium's creative talents.

Panama showed in glimpses that they can hold on to the ball in this game, so they may opt for a more reserved approach against a less fearsome Tunisia side, but for their next game against the Three Lions we could once again see a plethora of bookings.

3Solid first half from Panama
Their resolve gave way within minutes of the second half starting but Panama should be pleased with their first-half performance.

Goalkeeper Jaime Penedo was sharp when called upon and they minimised the space between their midfield and defence to limit the impact of Eden Hazard and De Bruyne in the first period.

Their defeat was a result of diminishing fitness and concentration against one of the tournament's fiercest sides and they showed enough on and off the ball early on to suggest they could frustrate in their final game with Tunisia.

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Liam FlinRacing Post Sport

Published on 18 June 2018inNFL tips