Shaken Belgians coast to win
Lukaku dedicates first of brace to stricken Dane Eriksen, a close pal of many Red Devils
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ST PETERSBURG • Belgium eased to a 3-0 opening Euro 2020 Group B win over hosts Russia on Saturday but considered the victory a footnote after the frightening collapse of Denmark playmaker Christian Eriksen, a long-time teammate and friend of several Belgian players.
Eriksen was earlier rushed to hospital after crumpling to the ground during his side's Group B game against Finland and medical personnel had to perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation on him.
Romelu Lukaku dedicated his opening goal, the first of a double, to his Inter Milan team-mate, shouting, "Chris, Chris, stay strong mate, I love you" to the pitch-side camera.
The striker later told Belgian TV: "There were many tears before the match (against Russia). It was very hard for me to focus.
"It was very hard for me, for (Eriksen's ex-Ajax and Tottenham team-mates) Toby (Alderweireld), for Jan (Vertonghen), for Nacer (Chadli). We know him very well.
"I am happy with our victory, but our thoughts are with Christian. I just hope he gets well soon. His children need him, we need him."
Defender Alderweireld added that the team heard the news during their final preparations in their hotel. "A few of us consider Eriksen a friend. Nobody was thinking about our match at all," he said.
While several Belgium players were shaken by what happened to Eriksen, they managed to put the incident to the back of their minds as the top-ranked side confirmed their status as one of the favourites for the tournament.
Despite missing the injured pair of Kevin de Bruyne and Axel Witsel and Eden Hazard only passed fit for the bench, the Red Devils extended their unbeaten run to 10 games in all competitions, with just one defeat in their last 24 outings.
They have also scored in each of their last 31 games, leaving coach Roberto Martinez pleased with the team's professionalism.
"There were many positive aspects, especially to keep a clean sheet," the Spaniard said.
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Defeat suffered by top-ranked Belgium in their last 24 games, a 2-1 loss away to England in the Uefa Nations League last October.
"It's very important to be able to defend with the ball, to impose ourselves so we can hurt the opposition.
"We did that. We could have scored a few more, but it was very important to keep a clean sheet."
On the downside, Martinez revealed that there were more injury problems after confirming that Timothy Castagne's tournament was over.
The Leicester defender had to be substituted by Thomas Meunier, who went on to score the second goal, after a clash of heads with Daler Kuzyaev left him with a broken eye socket.
"He will probably need surgery, he will be out of the Euro", Martinez added.
Vertonghen was also forced off late on with an ankle complaint, but the Benfica defender later insisted he would be "fine" for Belgium's next match against Denmark in Copenhagen on Thursday.
REUTERS