Soccer-Belgium coach shows faith in shaky defence
Soccer Football - European Qualifiers - Group J - North Macedonia v Belgium - National Arena Todor Proeski, Skopje, North Macedonia - June 6, 2025 North Macedonia's Enis Bardhi in action with Belgium's Alexis Saelemaekers and Jeremy Doku REUTERS/Ognen Teofilovski/File Photo
SKOPJE (Reuters) -Belgium's defence came in for criticism after giving away a late equaliser to North Macedonia in their World Cup qualifier on Friday but coach Rudi Garcia said he had to show faith in them ahead of their next clash against Wales on Monday.
Belgian media and commentators said the team were fortunate to come away with a point from their opening Group J fixture, even though they led for most of the game in Skopje.
Hosts North Macedonia twice struck the woodwork and had a strike ruled out by VAR before grabbing an 86th-minute goal to draw 1-1.
Garcia, in only his third match in charge, said he wanted to show trust in his defenders for the clash against Wales in Brussels.
'It's a matter of trust. Our defenders need that. I don't want to point fingers at them because we also have to be able to bring more offensively. We have the qualities for that,' he told reporters.
Garcia said he did not feel he needed to adjust his defence, which in March conceded three goals to Ukraine in the Nations League promotion-relegation playoff.
'That's not necessary. Like I said it's a matter of trust for our defence. You can't solve that by adjusting the system.'
Belgium are heavily fancied to take the automatic qualification berth for the group winners but Wales have taken the early lead in the group with seven points from their opening three matches.
Garcia said there were several reasons for Belgium's mediocre showing in Skopje.
'The heat was one of them. But when you're 1-0 up, you can't give it up. It didn't go well. We made the wrong decision far too often with the last pass.'
There were also questions about Garcia's changes, after he took out captain Thomas Meunier and talisman Kevin De Bruyne early in the second half.
'It's also a physical issue. And there's also quality on the bench. I substituted Meunier because he already had a yellow card and I need him on Monday against Wales because I only have one right back.
'As for De Bruyne, I also thought about Monday's match. Playing 90 minutes twice in three days is a lot at this stage of the competition. Incidentally, I thought that we regained control after the substitutions due to our physical superiority,' Garcia added.
(Writing by Mark Gleeson in Cape Town; Editing by Clare Fallon)
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