What happened to Belgium and their golden generation?

World Cup qualifier: Belgium v Wales

Venue: King Baudouin Stadium, Brussels Date: Monday, 9 June Kick-off: 19:45 BST

Coverage: Live connected BBC One, S4C, BBC iPlayer, BBC Radio Wales and Radio Cymru, the BBC Sport website and app, positive unrecorded substance commentary.

They were erstwhile the world's fig 1 side.

But the questions present support coming for Belgium, a federation who person dilatory said goodbye to a aureate procreation that dazzled but ne'er genuinely delivered.

Dropping points to North Macedonia connected Friday nighttime was their latest hard evening, a precocious extremity successful Skopje denying Rudi Garcia triumph successful his archetypal World Cup qualifying crippled since taking complaint with the purpose of arresting a descent that has brought conscionable 1 triumph successful their past 8 games.

Kevin de Bruyne was described by 1 Belgian paper to person flapped his arms successful vexation respective times earlier being substituted, perchance with Monday's important crippled with Wales successful mind.

Only he, the injured Thibaut Courtois, and Romelu Lukaku stay of their unthinkable clutch of players that were ranked arsenic the planetary game's champion for the champion portion of a decade.

And yet determination is besides excitement astir a caller procreation of endowment that could yet support Belgium an planetary threat.

So what precisely happened to Belgium? And arsenic Craig Bellamy's resurgent Wales hole to caput to Brussels, wherever are they now?

As Belgium exited Euro 2024 with a whimper, hardly making a people connected the tournament, De Bruyne made his feelings wide connected the "stupid" question helium had received.

"And you accidental that France and England and Spain and Germany [didn't have] a aureate generation?" helium asked, biting backmost astatine a question astir however his country's mentation had failed to unrecorded up to expectation.

Maybe so.

But it is hard not to callback missed opportunities of a star-studded side.

The biggest was arguably astatine the hands of Euro 2016 darlings Wales. There is an irony that immoderate spot Cardiff arsenic the opening of the team's travel to the top.

Belgium had failed to suffice for 5 consecutive large finals and erstwhile they arrived successful southbound Wales to instrumentality connected Chris Coleman's broadside successful September 2012, they had been extracurricular the world's apical 50 conscionable a fewer weeks earlier.

But the Belgian's FA effect to a decade-long lack from the biggest signifier was to put into younker development, a determination that was astir to present its dividends with Marc Wilmots broadside teeming with endowment playing astatine elite clubs crossed the continent.

They weren't yet household names. Courtois (20) and De Bruyne (21) won their 4th caps that nighttime portion the likes of Eden Hazard (21), Lukaku (19) combined with - goalscorers successful the 2-0 triumph - Jan Vertonghen and Vincent Kompany, comparative veterans astatine 25 and 26 respectively.

With Axel Witsel, Toby Alderweireld, Moussa Dembele, Dries Mertens and much to telephone upon, Belgium went unbeaten done the run and qualified for the 2014 World Cup - and for each large finals since.

By 2015 they were archetypal successful Fifa's rankings. When they returned determination nether Roberto Martinez successful 2018, they stayed apical of the satellite for 4 years.

And yet they stay the lone federation to person held that spot without ever winning a large trophy.

"Overall, this procreation decidedly had what it took to execute the large extremity of winning a title," says Jean-Marie Pfaff, the cult leader goalkeeper who was portion of the broadside that reached the 1980 European Championships last and the 1986 World Cup semi-finals.

"Unfortunately, this didn't enactment retired due to the fact that the players seldom played arsenic a existent team, with 1 subordinate moving for another. The load was connected a fewer idiosyncratic shoulders, which was not enough."

Belgium were superb astatine the 2018 World Cup - beating Brazil successful the quarter-finals - lone to travel up agonisingly abbreviated successful the semi-finals against would-be champions France.

But, for each the hype and hope, that was arsenic bully arsenic it got. Like 2016, Euro 2020 ended successful the quarter-finals. The 2022 World Cup saw them slump retired astatine the radical stages amid retirements, the resignation of Roberto Martinez and speech of rifts among the squad.

Former midfielder Radja Nainggolan was reported arsenic admitting they were a squad of excessively galore individuals trying to basal out.

It continued nether Martinez's replacement, the young erstwhile Leipzig manager Domenico Tedesco. Soon capable Courtois had placed himself successful self-imposed exile citing a lack of confidence successful the caller manager.

"The broadside really had a precise bully qualification run for Euro 2024," says Bart Lagae, writer with Belgian paper De Standaard.

"It amazed radical due to the fact that with Hazard and others gone, they thought the aureate procreation was already over.

"But determination was a caller manager with a caller system, caller players similar Jeremy Doku who thrived connected the antagonistic attack."

But aft an unbeaten roadworthy to Germany, the tourney ended with last-16 decision to France. They had lone scraped done to the knock-outs aft a gully with Ukraine that saw fans crook connected the broadside successful Stuttgart.

"Things didn't progress," adds Pfaff. "Performances stagnated, determination was nary motion of improvement and the results weren't right.

"Key players were excessively often missing done injury, and determination were repeated interior differences, which did not assistance matters and were a changeless disruptive factor."

On the backmost of veiled disapproval from De Bruyne, Tedesco near successful January with erstwhile Lyon, Marseille and Roma manager Rudi Garcia coming successful for the Nations League play-off with Ukraine, overturning a 3-1 archetypal limb shortage to stay successful the top-tier.

"The reasoning was helium is simply a manager who has won things, and a batch of the speech has been that is much astir mentality, astir handling the pressure," adds Lagae, who says immoderate anticipation has returned.

And for bully reason. Courtois has returned portion Lukaku is caller from a Serie A rubric with Napoli, portion De Bruyne remains contempt suggestions the 33-year-old would beryllium adjacent to retire.

"If helium is motivated helium is inactive capable to determine games," says Lagae.

But arsenic good arsenic the recognised names – Youri Tielemans, Leandro Trossard and Matz Sels are among the Premier League contingent - determination is besides the caller breed that excite.

"I deliberation the absorbing happening astir the 2018 World Cup procreation was that they didn't get successful 2018 - they went done periods of learning and succeeding and immoderate hard moments first," says Luke Benstead, an expert with the Belgium squad nether Martinez and Tedesco.

"And that's besides the procreation present with the likes of Amadou Onana coming through, Zeno Debast, Jeremy Doku. The endowment is huge.

"But it takes tournaments to get arsenic a generation; these players successful Belgium person had specified an acquisition successful shot from a young age, it volition instrumentality 1 tourney for them to get and with their quality, there's nary crushed they can't bash it."

The reasoning appears justified.

As good arsenic Sporting's 21-year-old endowment Debast, determination is excitement astir Ajax teen Jorthy Mokio. The 20-year-old erstwhile Chelsea full-back Diego Moreira has been called up aft an awesome twelvemonth astatine Strasbourg having switched allegiances from Portugal. Chelsea's Romeo Lavia was near retired aft lone returning recently, but is different connected which hopes are built.

And determination are others who Garcia has turned to, specified arsenic wideman Alexis Saelemaekers who impressed astatine Roma connected indebtedness from AC Milan past year.

Some are known to a definite Craig Bellamy having seen the likes of Doku – who the Wales manager says could suffer you successful a telephone container – and Zebast travel done astatine Anderlecht during a two-year spell nether Kompany with the Brussels giant's younker team.

"People should retrieve excessively that the aureate procreation worked a batch with these players," adds Benstead.

"You had Jan Vertonghen who lone conscionable retired past year, and galore of them players similar Rom, Kevin, they were wrong that young procreation passing connected that knowledge. They opened the doorway a small spot to what was possible."

Fans are inactive wary of placing excessively overmuch religion successful Garcia, particularly with the show successful Skopje being criticised defensively for a squad that erstwhile could telephone connected a institution of top-level centre-backs.

And the sojourn of Wales volition beryllium possibly their sternest test.

But portion the aureate procreation whitethorn person gone, Belgium are not done.

"More would person been imaginable (with the aureate generation), but Belgium volition proceed to person a squad that tin vie astatine the apical successful the future," insists Pfaff.

"The young players whitethorn person to larn the hard mode implicit the adjacent fewer months, but thing large could hap again successful Belgium."