Belgium got their first win of Euro 2024 on Saturday night as they beat Romania 2-0 to keep their hopes of progression to the knockout stages in their own hands.
Leicester City centre-back Wout Faes lined up alongside a 37-year-old Jan Vertonghen at the heart of the Belgium defence and kept a clean sheet against a Romania side that had beat Ukraine 3-0 in their first group game.
It was vital that Faes and his teammates won in their second game having suffered a shock defeat to Slovakia days earlier and they took the lead after just two minutes through former Leicester midfielder Youri Tielemans.
Kevin De Bruyne made sure of the points with a 79th-minute goal in a game in which Belgium were much-improved but still showed signs of weakness.
Belgian media give differing verdicts on Leicester City’s Wout Faes
Faes had started the first group game alongside 20-year-old Anderlecht centre-back Zeno Deblast.
Having suffered defeat, manager Domenico Tedesco dropped Deblast to bring in the experience of Vertonghen and his calmness certainly helped Belgium.
Faes received mixed feedback from Belgian media in the aftermath of the game for his own display, with 7Sur7 harshly giving him a five out of ten – the lowest of any Belgian on the night – but Walfoot giving him an eight.
This perhaps reflects Faes as a player, with the defender a decent player but capable of worrying observers with his laid back demeanour.
In the comments that accompanied their rating of five, 7Sur7 said (translated to English): ‘He started well. But as is often the case, a certain nonchalance has crept into his game at certain times.
His match remains quite serious. The presence of Vertonghen can take away a little pressure from him, even if it will be necessary to wait for a higher opposition to be fully conquered.’
Walfoot were much more positive about his performance, however they did also identify his tendency to lose concentration as they commented: ‘Very impressive in impact and audacity, he is certainly the Devil who struggles the most…
…Then, of course, there is always this “Wout Faes moment”, when he misses a pass or gets caught in the back… but it didn’t lend to consequence this time.’
How did Leicester target Arthur Theate perform v Romania?
Faes’ international teammate Arthur Theate has emerged as a possible transfer target for Leicester and the 24-year-old was brought into the side against Romania having not featured in the Slovakia defeat.
The left-back played 77 minutes before being withdrawn with what looked liked a minor injury, but was solid if not spectacular in his first start in a major tournament.
Both 7Sur7 and Walfoot did agree in their assessment of the Rennes full-back, with both publications scoring Theate a six out of ten.
Walfoot’s score was backed up by the comment: ‘A sober and effective return in the eleven. Almost no offensive contribution, he left the field free for Doku and covered his rides. His exit on injury may be a new hard blow.’
Next up for Faes, Theate and Belgium is the final group game against Ukraine and, with all four teams in Group E on three points, there is still all to play for.
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