Lukebakio shines in Belgium thinking of Benfica: “Convinced everyone”

Philippe Albert, former player who excelled in the service of clubs like Newcastle, Fulham or Anderlecht, made, this Monday, use of the opinion space he signs in the Belgian newspaper SudInfo to be allowed to surrender to the performance presented by Dodi Lukebakio, in the service of the main selection of Belgium, over the last week.

Benfica's advance, remember, began the League of Nations group phase in the bench of alternates, from which he left, on the inaugural journey, to mark the goal that sealed the victory over Italy by 0-2, before winning the title and attending Kevin de Bruyne for the straight shot that paved the way for the categorical triumph achieved at the reception to Turkey, by 3-0.

Positive signs that deserved due applause from the countryman: “In the space of three games, Lukebakio convinced everyone, starting with the selector [Mark van Bommel], who gave him ownership in Sclessin. The Benfica wing had an incredible impact, with great impact on the level of imbalance along the sideline.”.

“ Has the ability to flex in. If he hadn't hit the post twice against Turkey, he'd be the best player on the team right now. [Mika] Godts, his companion on the left side, also adds a beautiful energy, even if, from my point of view, he should loosen up a little faster from the ball”, can be read.

“[Leandro] Trossar is not, at this moment, in a position to claim anything, after having failed the first two games. Its transfer to Besiktas may contribute to progressively moving away from priorities, since the Turkish championship is not the Premier League,” he continued.

“ We'll see how things are going to work out for you during this season, but in the meantime, the Lukebakio-Godts duo in the wings is indisputable... waiting for [Jérémy] Doku's return,” he added, referring to the muscle injury suffered by Manchester City's creative at the end of August, which drove him away from the options of the Red Devils.

Opportunity for Zeno Debast?

Much less reason to smile has had Zeno Debast, from Sporting, who, despite being summoned by Mark van Bommel, has not yet left the bench of alternates. A situation that, however, may even change in character, given the conditions for the meeting on Monday, against France, at the Stade de France.

“The center of the land will be decimated by the suspensions of De Bruyne and [Youri] Tielemans. This is a rude blow, in an essential sector of the land, even more, given that the block that Belgium’s selection will face runs the risk of being more defensive than usual, especially compared to Monday’s in Heysel”, he stressed.

“The selector will not have a wide range of options. You can re-fish [Mandela] Keita, who was on the bench in Sclessin, or pull a rabbit out of the hat, by throwing Debast in the midfield line, as Rudi Garcia tried to do against Ukraine in Murcia, but I don’t believe much in any of these solutions,” he added.