Lukaku confident of Belgium's chances against favourite Brazil

Romelu Lukaku, while reverent about Brazil’s football pedigree, is confident of posing problems for its defence.

Published : Jul 05, 2018 23:14 IST , Kazan

Belgium needs its striker Romelu Lukaku to fire in the crucial last-eight clash against Brazil.
Belgium needs its striker Romelu Lukaku to fire in the crucial last-eight clash against Brazil.
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Belgium needs its striker Romelu Lukaku to fire in the crucial last-eight clash against Brazil.

Belgium, despite its abundant talents, starts its quarterfinal match against Brazil as the second favourite. The team, which has found goals easy to come by, will need its striker Romelu Lukaku – who failed to score in the game against Japan after netting four in the group stages – to fire again.

Read: Belgium's attacking potency meets Brazil's defensive prowess in continental clash

The forward, while reverent about Brazil’s football pedigree, is confident of posing problems for its defence.

On facing Brazil

We are playing against the best team in the tournament, the favourite, so it will be a good test for us to figure out where we are in the larger scheme of things. Offensively they are very strong, players who can make the difference. They also have good box-to-box players. But, I feel, defensively they can be taken. Three out of their four defenders are experienced but we have trained for that.

The mood in the camp    

We are relaxed and focused on the game. We are prepared thoroughly as a team. We have put a system for three years and as individuals we are also improving. Now, we have to make sure that we succeed in a match like what we have tomorrow.

The underdogs

We are always playing with a lot of pressure even if we are seen as the underdog. We have to savour the game and do as much as possible for our country.

The biggest game of his life

I don’t think so, if we win tomorrow’s match, then the one after that would be more important. We are going to go on to the pitch and try to win. We have the quality to make the difference.

On the Japan game

Nothing in life is easy and if you want to achieve anything you have to fight. Against Japan we had to fight till the end.

Nacer Chadli’s match winner and his dummy

Honestly, as a team we played very well till the end. It was a beautiful goal to score on the counter and we have to continue that. It’s better to pass the ball to a colleague if he is in a better position.

Neymar, not an actor

He is skillful, and definitely not an actor. He has qualities that are out of the ordinary and in the future he will be the best player in the world. I am happy that I’ll be playing against him for the second time.

Drogba, a big brother

Didier is a big brother to me and he has helped me since I arrived in England. He demands a lot from me and I have to prove my worth tomorrow.

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