The concluding match of the EURO 2024 qualifiers between Belgium and Azerbaijan turned into a showcase for striker Romelu Lukaku as he completed a first-half poker, helping the home team secure a resounding 5-0 victory to finish at the top of the table.
Goals Belgium: Lukaku (17′, 26′, 30′, 37′); Trossard (90′)
Red card: Azerbaijan: Israfilov (24′)
Austria’s victory over Estonia in the last match of the qualifiers last weekend temporarily pushed Belgium to the top of Group F. To secure their leading position, Belgium needed a win against Azerbaijan. That’s why Coach Domenico Tedesco fielded the strongest lineup to face the underdog Azerbaijan at home.
With a superior squad, Belgium quickly established an overwhelming attacking presence and opened the scoring in the 17th minute when Lukaku headed in after a pass from Jeremy Doku. With the advantage, Belgium gained further control when Azerbaijan’s midfielder Eddy Israfilov received a red card and was sent off in the 24th minute.
Playing with a numerical advantage, Belgium continued to dominate, and before the end of the first half, striker Lukaku scored three more goals to complete his poker. This marked the first time in Lukaku’s career that he scored four goals in a match for the Belgian national team. Previously, he had scored a poker in a 6-3 victory for Everton against Bournemouth in February 2017 in the Premier League.
The 30-year-old, captain of the Belgian national team, has now scored 83 goals in 113 appearances for the national team, making him the seventh-highest goal scorer in the history of international men’s football. Only Cristiano Ronaldo (128 goals, Portugal national team), Ali Daei (109, Iran), Lionel Messi (106, Argentina), Sunil Chhetri (93, India), Mokhtar Dahari (89, Malaysia), and Ferenc Puskas (84, Hungary) have scored more goals than Lukaku in international football.
The match concluded with Arsenal’s player Leandro Trossard securing a 5-0 victory in the 90th minute. With this win, Belgium finished the EURO 2024 qualifying campaign at the top of the table with 20 points after 8 rounds, one point ahead of the second-placed Austria.
Starting Lineup:
Belgium: Casteels; Faes, Vertonghen, Theate; Castagne, Mangala, Vranckx, Doku; Bakayoko, Trossard; Lukaku
Azerbaijan:Â Magomedaliyev; Jafarguliyev, Krivotsyuk, Mammadov, Haghverdi; Israfilov; Bayramov, Isayev, Makhmudov, Emreli; Dadashov
