Januzaj turns down Belgium

OLYMPIQUE MARSEILLE striker Michy Batshuayi has been recalled to Belgium’s squad for friendlies against Italy and Spain but Divock Origi has been sent down to the Under- 21 side, national coach Marc Wilmots said yesterday.

Batshauyi was left out of last month’s European Championship qualifiers which sent Belgium through to next year’s finals in France.

Origi was dropped from the senior national team for the first time since last year’s World Cup as Belgium are seeking to strengthen their U21 side for a qualifier against the Czech Republic on November 12.

Zakkaria Bakkali of Valencia has also been sent to help out but Adnan Januzaj turned down a call-up.

“Enzo Scifo (the U21 coach) had him on the phone for 20 minutes but he rather wants to stay at his club. I have taken note of that,” Wilmots added.

Christian Benteke, Moussa Dembele and Thomas Vermaelen all return after injury for the matches in Brussels against the Italians and Spanish on November 13 and November 17. Belgium moved to number one in the FIFA rankings this week for the first time. – Reuters Squad: Goalkeepers: Jean-Francois Gillet (Mechelen), Simon Mignolet (Liverpool), Matz Sels (Ghent) Defenders: Toby Alderweireld (Tottenham Hotspur), Luis Pedro Cavanda (Trabzonspor), Jason Denayer (Galatasaray), Vincent Kompany (Manchester City), Nicolas Lombaerts ( Zenit St-Petersburg), Jordan Lukaku (Oostende), Thomas Meunier (Club Brugge), Thomas Vermaelen (Barcelona), Jan Vertonghen (Tottenham Hotspur) Midfielders: Kevin de Bruyne ( Manchester City), Mousa Dembele ( Tottenham Hotspur), Marouane Fellaini (Manchester United), Radja Nainggolan ( Roma), Axel Witsel Lombaerts (Zenit St-Petersburg) Forwards: Michy Batshuayi ( Olympique Marseille), Christian Benteke (Liverpool), Yannick Ferreira Carrasco (Atletico Madrid), Laurent Depoitre ( Ghent), Eden Hazard ( Chelsea), Romelu Lukaku ( Everton), Dries Mertens (Napoli).