Belgium at a loss to explain collapse against Swiss

LUCERNE, Switzerland: Belgium were at a loss to explain their astonishing collapse against Switzerland on Sunday, when they threw away a two-goal lead, conceded five goals in an hour and missed out on the final four of the Nations League.

Some players felt the World Cup semi- finalists might have got carried away after they went two goals ahead after only 17 minutes.

Certainly there was a point shortly after their second goal when Belgium were passing the ball around in midfield to cheers from their fans where they seemed to be tempting fate.

“Arrogance? No, we were surprised on counter- attacks, we forgot to defend well,” coach Roberto Martinez said after the 5-2 defeat.

The Swiss, who lost 2- 1 in Brussels, qualified for the semifinals on their head-to-head record after both teams finished with nine points in Group A2.

“It’s very difficult to give an explanation. We started well, then at a certain point, Switzerland had nothing to lose,” added Martinez after losing only his second competitive match since taking charge following Euro 2016.

“We gave them opportunities to come back in the game. We must come out stronger, try to understand what we have done wrong. It is all the more painful that we had started very well.”

Midfielder Thomas Meunier said Belgium had “everything in our own hands” after their flying start.

“It was a perfect game for us. We could have scored even more,” he said. — Reuters