The Red Devils have officially forgotten how to play football

Watching Belgium play Egypt today was like watching a guy try to assemble a piece of furniture from IKEA without the manual, a cordless drill, or his dignity. You expect a certain level of pedigree from a team that sits in the FIFA rankings like they own the place. Instead, we got ninety minutes of aimless passing, defensive lapses that would get a Sunday league side relegated, and an absolute panic whenever the ball crossed the halfway line.

If you were banking on this team to make a deep run in 2026, I have some oceanfront property in Kansas to sell you. They escaped with a 1-1 draw, but let’s call a spade a spade: they were lucky to leave the pitch with a single point. It was a masterclass in how to waste world-class talent by refusing to make any coherent tactical adjustments until the 75th minute.

The midfield was a vacuum of intent

Everything wrong with this squad started in the middle of the pitch. The pivot was essentially non-existent. Whenever Egypt bypassed the press—which happened about every three minutes—there was nothing but open grass for the Egyptian attackers to exploit. It was like watching a turnstile at a subway station left stuck in the open position.

You can talk about individual brilliance all you want, but football is about spacing and transitions. Belgium looked like they were playing on a pitch that was ten yards wider than the regulation size. They lacked the discipline to narrow the gaps, and Egypt’s counter-attack looked like a Ferrari driving through a school zone. It’s hard to believe this is the same group that spent the last decade bullying their way through qualification cycles.

The lack of urgency was the most insulting part for the fans in the stands. Every pass was played with the intensity of someone checking their email on a Friday afternoon. If you aren’t going to track back, you don’t deserve the kit. I’ve seen more defensive effort from a cat waiting for a laser pointer light to show up on the carpet.

Tactical stagnation is a death sentence

The biggest issue here isn't the talent pool; it's the stubbornness to keep running a system that clearly ran out of gas three years ago. We are seeing a side that clings to their reputation because they have nothing else to hold onto. As recent reporting on international squad cycles suggests, teams that refuse to integrate fresh legs before they are forced to by injury or age usually end up face-planting at the biggest events.

There was a moment early in the second half where the back line sat so deep they were practically hugging the goalkeeper. You cannot survive at this level playing that far back unless you are absolute masters of the offside trap. Belgium had neither the coordination nor the speed to pull it off. They were just waiting for a mistake to happen, and eventually, the equalizer felt like an inevitability rather than a shock.

Watching the reaction on social media, you’d think the sky was falling. It might actually be. If the team doesn't pivot from this rigid, safe style of play into something faster, they’re going to be booking flights home before the group stage wraps up. It was a grim showing that didn't provide a single reason for optimism beyond individual talent that hasn't clicked in two calendar years.

The road ahead looks like a cliff

You can’t count on luck to bail you out against better-organized teams. When you look at how the tournament bracket is shaping up, playing a draw against a team with Egypt's profile is a massive red flag. Belgium needed three points here to build momentum, and instead, they look like they’ve lost the plot entirely.

The coaching staff seems wedded to the idea that their stars will simply conjure a win out of thin air. That might have worked when Eden Hazard was in his prime or when the squad was firing on all cylinders, but those days are gone. Now, they are a collection of famous names playing like strangers in an airport terminal.

If Kevin De Bruyne isn't threading impossible needles, this team basically stops moving. That isn't a winning strategy; it's a prayer. A team as deep as Belgium should never rely on the heroics of one man just to squeeze out a point against a side they should be dominating. They need a total reset before the next match, or the rest of the world will continue to feast on their confusion.

At the end of the day, a 1-1 draw is 1-1 regardless of how you spin it in the post-game press conference. The players looked frustrated, the manager looked out of ideas, and the fans left the stadium looking for a refund on their time. If you missed this match, don't go back and watch the highlights. Just go take a walk outside; it’ll be a much better use of two hours than waiting for Belgium to actually show up.