Roberto Martinez has praised Belgium for creating history by finishing third in the World Cup 2018. The current Belgian squad has been dubbed as the ‘golden generation’ for possessing incredible talent with the likes of Eden Hazard, Kevin De Bruyne, Thibaut Courtois, and Lukaku in the team. Belgium had come into the tournament as one of the underdogs but they were able to create the most excitement by ripping apart many teams across the competition. Belgium even beat Brazil before finally faltering at the hands of France in the semifinals. Many, though, felt that Belgium would have been deserved winners of the competition.

However, there was some consolation in the form of a win over England and this secured the third place for Belgium. After coming into the managerial role only recently, Martinez was able to get Belgium to a huge improvement. The third place finish at the World Cup 2018 means that the squad was able to improve on the achievements of the 1986 squad. Now, Martinez is hoping that in the brilliant competition will be a stepping stone towards more successful Belgium in the future. There will be little doubt that this Belgium team will be considered as a favourite for the upcoming Euro 2020 alongside reigning World Cup champions France.

“We wanted to win it. When you beat Brazil and get into the semi-final, the focus has to be to try to win the World Cup.But you need to be realistic when you finish the tournament and look back.These players made history back in Belgium and that’s all that matters. These players deserve to have that accolade.The generation of Mexico 86 set a real inspiration and real vision for all the footballers in Belgium,” said Martinez. The entire team welcomed back as a heroes in Brussels.