Belgium 6-1 Poland: Kevin De Bruyne and Leandro Trossard on target as Belgium bounce back to thrash Poland

A rejuvenated Belgium ran riot in Brussels as they hammered Poland 6-1. The hosts were forced to come from behind to pick up their first win of the Nations League campaign, but four second half goals were more than enough to earn a huge three points, with Kevin De Bruyne and Eden Hazard playing starring roles.

Belgium dominated the opening exchanges, with Eden Hazard missing a sitter after Michy Batshuayi’s shot had clattered the post, while the Besiktas striker then had a goal ruled out for offside. It was the visitors who took the lead against the run of play though as Sebastian Szymanski’s clipped pass was brilliantly controlled by Robert Lewandowski, who then fired home his 76th international goal.

Poland sat back on their advantage, defending their 18-yard box superbly and limiting time on the ball for Hazard and Kevin De Bruyne. The latter was involved as the hosts equalised just before half-time though, with his shot pushed away by Bartlomiej Dragowski, only to fall to Timothy Castagne. He stabbed it back to Axel Witsel, and the midfielder brilliantly whipped a ferocious effort into the bottom corner from 20-yards.

That gave the Red Devils the momentum, and Dragowski was forced into a fine double save after the break, firstly keeping out Leander Dendoncker’s powerful header, before superbly pushing away Hazard’s curling drive. It looked like a matter of time before they took the lead for the first time, and the hosts duly obliged on 59-minutes when De Bruyne coolly clipped home from Hazard’s lay-off.

From then on, there was only going to be one winner, and Roberto Martinez’s side put the game to bed when substitute Leandro Trossard ran onto Batshuayi’s through ball, shuffled onto his left foot and fired home. The Brighton star then grabbed the goal of the game on 80-minutes, curling into the far top corner from an incredibly tight angle, before Leander Dendoncker bagged his first international goal from 25-yards, arrowing a shot into the bottom corner.

Lois Openda added his name to the scoresheet in stoppage-time to complete the thrashing.

TALKING POINT – Belgium bounce back

Belgium were utterly humiliated last week when they lost 4-1 at home to the Netherlands in their Nations League opener, so they needed a response – and boy, did they provide one.

Roberto Martinez’s side, without Romelu Lukaku due to injury, may have gone behind, but they dominated this game throughout, peppering the Poland goal and clattering home five second half strikes to notch up their first win of the campaign.

Weaker teams may well have wilted after Lewandowski’s goal, but the Red Devils kept pushing forward, with De Bruyne and Hazard in particular creating chance after chance. Once the third goal went in, it was game over, with the final 10 minutes turning into a procession as Belgium humiliated their opponents, righting the wrongs of that Holland defeat – and doing their goal difference the world of good in the process.

MAN OF THE MATCH

Kevin De Bruyne (Belgium). It is hard to find any new superlatives to describe the play-maker, but he was, as ever, the central figure in his side’s win. The Manchester City man was so calm when he slotted home before the hour mark, and that paved the way for an eventually comfortable win.

However, it was not just his goalscoring exploits that impressed. De Bruyne was involved in the Belgium equaliser when his shot was pushed away by Dragowski, and he constantly floated around the final third, terrorising the Poland defence.

Indeed, the visitors did their best to minimalise the space afforded to the 30-year old, particularly in the first half when they kept 11 men behind the ball. However, he’s the kind of player you cannot keep out of the game, and time after time he found that half a yard of space needed to make an impact.

PLAYER RATINGS

BELGIUM: Mignolet 6; Dendoncker 7, Alderweireld 6, Vertonghen 6, Castagne 7, Tielemans 6, Witsel 7, Carrasco 6; De Bruyne 8, Eden Hazard 8, Batshuayi 6. Subs: Trossard 7, De Ketelaere 6, Openda 7, Thorgan Hazard n/a, Faes n/a

POLAND: Dragowski 7, Gumny 6, Bednarek 6, Glik 6, Puchacz 6, Krychowiak 5, Zurkowski 6, Kaminski 6, Zielinski 7, Sebastian Szymanski 6, Lewandowski 7. Subs: Bereszynski 6, Damian Szymanski 6, Cash 6, Buska 6, Zalewski n/a

MATCH HIGHLIGHTS

28’ GOAL – BELGIUM 0-1 POLAND (Lewandowski). Robert Lewandowski. Who else? International goal number 76 for the Poland captain as he brilliantly controls Sebastian Szymanski’s ball before finishing superbly into the corner. The visitors have the lead!

42’ GOAL – BELGIUM 1-1 POLAND (Witsel). That’s a brilliant way to level. De Bruyne’s shot is pushed away, but Castagne prods the ball back to Witsel, who whips a ferocious curling effort in at the near post.

59’ GOAL – BELGIUM 2-1 POLAND (De Bruyne). The hosts take the lead for the first time as Hazard squares to an unmarked De Bruyne, and the Manchester City man just curls it past the ‘keeper as if it’s the easiest thing in the world. 2-1 to Belgium.

73’ GOAL – BELGIUM 3-1 POLAND (Trossard). He’s only been on the pitch a couple of minutes, but Trossard makes it 3-1 as he dips and ducks inside the penalty area before coolly slotting home, via a deflection.

80’ GOAL – BELGIUM 4-1 POLAND (Trossard). Oh. My. Days. That is sublime! Trossard grabs another, picking the ball up near the corner of the box, and he floats an unbelievable curling effort into the top corner. 4-1!

83’ GOAL – BELGIUM 5-1 POLAND (Dendoncker). Belgium are making this embarrassing now. Dendoncker, denied earlier, gets the fifth, a smashing 25-yard effort that arrows into the far bottom corner.

90+3’ GOAL – BELGIUM 6-1 POLAND (Openda). Luis Openda receives a beautiful through-ball from Thorgan Hazard and clips home his first international goal, Belgium’s sixth of the night! This has been a battering!

KEY STATS

• Belgium have now scored in 46 successive matches – dating back to their semi-final defeat to France at the 2018 World Cup
• This is the first time Poland have lost to Belgium since a 1985 World Cup qualifier