Published On 6/5/2026
Belgian national team coach Rudi Garcia issued stern warnings about the physical condition of the Red Devils’ all-time top scorer Romelu Lukaku, stressing that he would not risk starting him in the first World Cup qualifiers, thus resetting, with his realistic words, the high expectations of the fans and the media.
Garcia’s statements came after Belgium’s friendly victory over Croatia with two clean goals, in a match that saw Lukaku (33 years old) score his 90th international goal, strengthening his lead among his country’s all-time top scorers, and equaling Mark Wilmots’ record as the Belgian who scored the most in the World Cup (5 goals). Despite this promising scoring return, it seems that behind the scenes of the Belgian camp there is a lot of concern about the player’s readiness.
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Lukaku lived a disastrous season with his Italian club Napoli (2025-2026) due to the curse of injuries in the hamstring muscles, as he only appeared in 7 matches as a substitute in various competitions, which made Garcia curb the language of excessive optimism, saying: “We must keep our feet on the ground and not rush. We are happy with his goal against Croatia because Romelu lives for the net, and this is an excellent thing for his mentality, but the biggest danger now is the belief that he has become “Completely ready.”
Garcia added firmly before Tunisia’s friendly match at the Belgian Kings Stadium: “Saying that he will start in the opening of the World Cup against Egypt is much premature. Lukaku has not played or trained regularly this season, and we will give him only 25 minutes against Tunisia, because we want to preserve him for a long tournament.”
Trossard…from the English podium to the World Cup dream
In contrast to the ambiguity surrounding Lukaku’s position, morale appears to be very high among star Leandro Trossard, who is living his best football period after he led Arsenal to end a 22-year contract by winning the English Premier League title, contributing 18 goals (scoring 8 and making 10) in 50 matches.
Despite the bitterness of losing the Champions League final on penalties to Paris Saint-Germain, which Trossard watched from the bench before late joining the Belgium camp, the player sees this exceptional season as great motivation.
Trossard commented on his ambitions, saying: “It is wonderful to come to the national team crowned with titles, and despite the European disappointment in the lucky kicks, we are very proud of the English Premier League, and I will try to bring this winning mentality and experience to help my colleagues in the World Cup.”
Belgium begins its World Cup campaign in North America in Group G, facing the Pharaohs on June 15, before meeting Iran and New Zealand.
