U21 European Championship, De Ketelaere’s Belgium draws, Georgia feat

Belgium and the Netherlands, in one of the two opening matches of the European Championship played in Tbilisi, do not go beyond the 0-0 and already find themselves chasing: the hosts of Georgia indeed beat Portugal by surprise and take the lead from group A. But the absence of goals at the Meskhi stadium shouldn’t deceive: the few spectators weren’t bored, thanks to two teams with significant quality cues and not exactly waterproof in defence. Among the interested eyes, at least from TV, those of the AC Milan fans: Charles De Ketelaere, back in the Under 21s to take a run up and come back up, showed a couple of interesting flashes diluted however in the usual discontinuity. Some more interesting notes ended up in the notes on Lois Openda: the Belgian striker from Lens (21 goals in Ligue 1 and 13 in 16 appearances for Under) impressed with his speed in progression and his ability to face the goal. He didn’t find the goal but he came close to it, on CDK’s best play (a splendid vertical pocket from midfield) who sent him face to face with the excellent Verbruggen, good at saying no. Evidence of an agreement that in the meantime will serve Belgium to reach qualification and then – why not – can whet the imagination in terms of the transfer market.

Start OrangeThe Netherlands coached by Erwin van de Looi (father of Brescia midfielder, Tom) starts much more proactive. He already dribbles from the back for a long time – with the associated risks – and then attacks en masse, almost scoring in the first 10′: from the right-footed trocar the hole comes for Taylor who escapes from the central players and crosses on the post. The Dutch never give up on phrasing, even from dead ball: and it is on the articulated development of a corner kick that, close to the quarter of an hour, another double great opportunity arises with Empoli’s De Winter (on loan from Juve) good at saving twice on the line, first on Brobbey and then on Summerville. The wave subsides midway through the first half, when the pace slows down and you notice how expensive (and a bit extreme) the Orange system is: a 3-4-3 based on continuous rotations in the middle of the field to remove the references and then slip between the lines, with the predisposition for immediate ball recovery and – when he fails – for one-on-one defense with a lot of field behind him. At half an hour, the Azeri referee Aghayev had already handed out four yellow cards (two on each side, the Dutch star Gravenberch, Bayern midfielder, is also in the notebook) which help to curb the intensity a bit. The Dutch offensive flow begins to lean to the left, where the Summerville elf (4 goals in the Premier League with Leeds) starts with an inverted foot and wreaks havoc, still finding the silhouette of De Winter – great sense of position – to shield another attempt to shot. In any case, Belgium’s low center of gravity goes well with Openda’s rapid progression: a central tear from the Lens attacker thus generates his first notification in the match, leading to Vertessen’s shot. In this wake, we understand how the search for depth can send the Dutch into suffering. And thus, shortly before the break, De Ketelaere’s first noteworthy play was born: the AC Milan player moves back in midfield and thinks vertically with a splendid left-footed half-back, sending the usual Openda on goal (Verbruggen’s save was decisive) .

Changes for Belgium Belgium comes out of the locker room with fresh energy: inside the winger Balikwisha – who immediately wins a free-kick on the short side of the left – and the full-back Siquet, who beats that free-kick finding a dirty deflection on the crossbar. The waltz of substitutions leads the Netherlands to defend themselves often with four and to lower themselves, with the game thus changing: opportunities arrive from both sides, often the result of imperfect defensive countermeasures. De Ketelaere stands out for his good dribbling from 20 metres, but a rebound takes away the right time for his shot. However, it is Belgium that moves up the tide, compared to the first half: the man of the match statuette is taken by Dutch goalkeeper Verbrugghen (who plays in Brussels, for Anderlecht) with a couple of decisive saves: in fact, twice it is exalted on Balikwisha, in a case triggered by a velvet heel by Openda which also disguises itself as a finisher. Belgium protests, in the final, for a touch by Van Hecke (reserve centre-half for De Zerbi’s Brighton), but his arms were clearly crossed behind his back. An episode that serves as a reminder: in this European Championship there is no technology, neither Var nor Goal Line Technology. You have to get used to it.

Results and rankingsBelgium-Netherlands 0-0

Georgia-Portugal 2-0 (goals by Gagua and Sazonov).

Ukraine-Croatia 2-0 (goals by Kashchuk and Sikan)

Ongoing Romania-Spain.

Group A standings: Georgia 3 pts, Belgium and Holland 1, Portugal 0.