Romelu Lukaku goal helps Belgium beat Croatia in a friendly match
Romelu Lukaku secures Belgium victory against World Cup 2018 finalists Croatia courtesy of Jason Denayer’s assist
Romelu Lukaku scored his 60th Belgium goal to secure a 1-0 win over Croatia in their Euro 2020 warm-up.
Lukaku smashed the ball in to the net from inside the penalty box in the 38th minute to win the match for the top-ranked Belgians, who will start the Euros in confident mood after a convincing performance.
They dismissed a bright spell at the start from Croatia to enjoy a comfortable victory, which might have had a more commanding scoreline had they taken all of their chances, as they confirmed their status as one the Euro 2020 favourites.
The goal came when fellow European Championship contenders Croatia failed to clear a corner and Lukaku was first to swivel and hook the ball home after Jason Denayer laid it on for him.
Lukaku had crashed a powerful strike against the crossbar seven minutes earlier as he shrugged off three markers to turn and fire goalwards. Yannick Carrasco was first to the rebound but sent his header against the bar too.
I did what I had to do for the team,” said Lukaku after the match.
“This result gives us a great feeling. Now it’s just a matter of getting a bit sharper and getting the other players 100% ready,” he added, with captain Eden Hazard, Kevin De Bruyne and Axel Witsel all battling for fitness.
“Then a lot is possible.”