Arsenal star hailed for 'very good performance' after scoring in huge international win
One of Arsenal’s reliable players put in a bid performance for his country on Monday.
Arsenal star Leandro Trossard was in international action with Belgium on Monday night, helping his nation to a vital win in their bid to qualify for the World Cup. Belgium faced Wales on Monday night in Cardiff in what was a defining clash in the group, with the two teams having been side-by-side in the group.
But Belgium have now moved four points ahead of Wales after a 4-2 win and they are one point ahead of North Macedonia with a game in-hand over them. That means the Red Devils only need to win one of their last two games to book automatic qualification for the World Cup, and they face Kazakhstan and Liechtenstein.
Belgium actually fell behind in Cardiff, but a Kevin De Bruyne penalty and a Thomas Meunier goal soon turned things around. De Bruyne scored another penalty late on to put the game out of reach, and after Nathan Broadhead pulled Wales back to 3-2, Belgium almlst instantly put it back out of reach with a quick goal from Arsenal star Leandro Trossard.
Trossard struggled for Belgium against North Macedonia over the weekend, but his performance here was much better received. RTBF gave him a 6/10, reasoning: “Invisible for the first half-hour, Leandro Trossard came out of his box to take a nice cross from Doku but his shot was deflected by Rodon. The Arsenal winger had a roller coaster at the end of the match: he lost the ball in front of his box in the 89th minute, which made it 2-3... before scoring 2-4 a few seconds later, on a pass from Castagne.”
Meanwhile, the same newpaper’s football expert and former coach Felice Mazzù said: “Often criticized for his performances in the national team, the Arsenal player responded to the criticism with a very good performance. When you look at the profile of the wingers, apart from the injured Saelemaekers, his selection is completely legitimate just for his defensive work.
“He's used to doing it, he knows how to defend because at Arsenal, if you don't defend, you don't play. Tonight, during each of the opponent's attacks, he positioned himself inside the play at the heart of the Belgian defensive block. This allowed him to close down angles for shots and strikes and, above all, to be positioned to recover balls and that is extremely important for the team."
Garcia’s delight
Speaking after the game, Belgium boss Rudi Garcia said of the win “I thought Charles De Ketelaere was very good. He has quality, technique, a back-to-goal game and depth. He didn't have 90 minutes in his legs. I already knew that he would have to be replaced, as well as Maxim De Cuyper and Amadou Onana . I liked those who came on, and it was nice to see Axel Witsel back . A special mention for Kevin De Bruyne; scoring two penalties in the same match is never easy. He's a top player and he once again carried the team to victory.
“We didn't start well, we didn't know how to set our game. We lost balls too quickly, we lacked composure. Overall, we defended pretty well. We are capable of biting, the team showed it tonight. We knew they would be vulnerable behind Ben Davies, Jérémy Doku was able to hurt them. We have to stay humble.”
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