Belgium won 3-0 over Russia in the match in Group B Euro 2020 (2021) at the Saint Petersburg Stadium, Sunday (13/6).
Belgium went 2-0 up in the first half through goals from striker Romelu Lukaku and versatile player Thomas Meunier.
Lukaku put the Red Devils ahead in the 10th minute after capitalizing on a blunder from defender Andrey Semenov. Meanwhile, Meunier added to Belgium’s lead after goalkeeper Anton Shunin failed to catch Thorgan Hazard’s cross.
After trailing 0-2 in the first half, Russia stepped up attacks early in the second half. Roman Zobnin made an experiment in the 46th minute, but was not on target.
Aleksandr Golovin’s shot in the 55th minute was also blocked by the Belgian defense.
When Russia started to play aggressively in the second half, Belgium actually seemed to relax the game. Russia tried to increase the intensity of attacks through both wings by releasing crosses and making Artem Dzyuba a target.
However, Russia’s efforts to reduce the position by creating a goal opportunity through a cross can still be blocked by the Belgian defense.
In the middle of the second half, both Belgium and Russia looked equally hesitant in attacking. Belgium’s aggressive game in the first half was no longer seen in the second half.
However, Lukaku was finally able to score his second goal of the match to give Belgium a 3-0 lead in the 88th minute.
After receiving Meunier’s through ball which took advantage of the inadvertence of the Russian defence, Lukaku dribbled into the box and fired a right-footed shot that goalkeeper Shunin couldn’t anticipate.
With no additional goals in the remaining matches, Belgium won 3-0 over Russia at Euro 2020.
Belgium is far superior in possession of the ball, reaching 61 percent. They also excel when it comes to aiming shots, by 4 to 1.
This result makes Belgium now top the Group B standings with 3 points, ahead on goal difference from Finland.
In the previous match, Finland, which was the debutant team, managed to beat host Denmark 1-0 at the Parken Stadium, Copenhagen.
This match was suspended for 90 minutes, in the 43rd minute, due to the collapse of Christian Eriksen. The player received cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) treatment from the medical team and was eventually taken to the hospital in a conscious condition.
When the match resumed, Finland won a goal through Joel Pohjanpalo in the 60th minute. Denmark’s chance to retaliate was wasted as Pierre-Emile Hoejbjerg missed a penalty in the 74th minute.
