BELGIUM

What do Jamal Musiala, Gavi and Anthony Gordon have in common? They all played in the KDB Cup, the now 10-year-old prestigious youth tournament named after (and supported by) Kevin De Bruyne. His own younger years – back when he frequently ran away from training because of arguments with coaches, was supporting Liverpool and went on a trial at Arsenal – seem a long time ago now. He arrives at the World Cup as an elder statesman, a Manchester City legend, with 422 games, 108 goals and 19 trophies, and one of Belgium’s last “golden generation” members. He certainly hopes to perform better than at the previous World Cup. If not, he’ll be flying home on his 35th birthday, since it falls right after the New Zealand game. But whatever happens, the family’s future looks bright after footage emerged of his seven-year-old son Rome scoring some of his dad’s trademark goals at Real Casarea, a club in the Napoli area.

This year Tielemans celebrates his 10th anniversary as a Red Devil. Belgium fans still remember him as an 18-year old at his squad initiation ceremony singing Cheerleader by Omi in front of his teammates. And now, in his fifth major tournament, he wants to play a key role for the first time. And he should, because Rudi Garcia has named him captain, which is quite some honour with Thibaut Courtois, Kevin De Bruyne and Romelu Lukaku also in the squad. Tielemans was the least controversial choice, though: not only does he speak Dutch and French fluidly, he is loved by nearly everyone. Besides his great feet – he scores screamers with both, such as his unforgettable winner for Leicester in the FA Cup final in 2022 against Chelsea – he always puts the team first. Negative stories? You won’t find any. He also never talks about his private life, so it took a while to double check that he now has three daughters rather than two.

Some strikers don’t score 89 goals in their entire career. Lukaku arrived at this World Cup having scored 89 for his country alone. That’s over twice as many as any other Belgian player – and why his nickname “Big Rom” isn’t just a reference to his bulky 1.91m frame. At this tournament he will be on a mission. Four years ago, in Qatar, he wasn’t fully fit and missed some big chances as a substitute against Croatia. “Afterwards, on vacation, for a week straight I was crying every day”, he told Koolcast later on. Apart from his sons Jordan and Romeo, it was the legendary Thierry Henry, former assistant of the national team, who gave him the mental support he needed. Last season Lukaku had his share of bad luck with his hamstring injury, which led to a falling out with the coaching staff and board at Napoli as the striker opted to complete a big part of his rehab in Antwerp. But even without many minutes to his name in 2025-26, defenders will still fear his strength and efficiency.