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Of the four survivors from 2014 and 2018, 34-year-old Courtois has played every minute of this tournament, but De Bruyne, Lukaku and Witsel have featured far less regularly.<\/p>\n
Central midfielder Witsel, 37, who left relegated Girona at the end of the La Liga season, was brought on for a single minute at the end of the win over the USA. <\/p>\n
At 33, Lukaku has scored an impressive three goals but has done so by playing fewer than 50% of minutes, often coming on as a substitute and taking advantage of a tired defence reeling from the strong pressing of 25-year-old Atalanta forward Charles De Ketelaere.<\/p>\n
And De Bruyne, now 35, was injured during the Senegal game – before his departure Belgium had won one out of three matches, but since then they have won twice and scored seven goals in roughly 130 minutes of play.<\/p>\n
Full-back Thomas Meunier also played in the 2018 tournament, but not 2014, and his minutes played have decreased as the tournament has gone on.<\/p>\n
None of that is to say the more senior players are not contributing – Courtois remains one of the world’s best goalkeepers, Lukaku’s goals have been crucial, and De Bruyne’s performances were among the team’s best before his unfortunate injury.<\/p>\n
But their role in the squad is changing, with a greater reliance on them making the difference in key moments rather than taking responsibility for the overall quality of the team’s performances.<\/p>\n
So far at least, Garcia and Belgium appear to handling the transition better than many teams do when their stars begin to fade.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
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