Belgium coach Marc Wilmots has warned against taking Hungary for granted when they face an ambitious modern-day version of the ‘Magical Magyars’ looking to book their quarterfinal place at Euro 2016 o
Belgium coach Marc Wilmots has warned against taking Hungary for granted when they face an ambitious modern-day version of the ‘Magical Magyars’ looking to book their quarterfinal place at Euro 2016 on Sunday.
While Belgium have failed to live up to their status as the world’s second-best ranked team, Hungary’s feats at their first international tournament for three decades have inspired a nation.
German coach Bernd Storck’s men sealed their place in the last 16 with a stunning 3-3 draw that Portugal’s two-goal hero Cristiano Ronaldo called ‘insane’.
Hungary, whose last major finals appearance came at the 1986 World Cup, finished top of Group ‘E’ to join a host of other nations who have punched above their weight to reach the knockout phase.
Packed with stars like Chelsea’s Eden Hazard, Manchester City’s Kevin De Bruyne, Marouane Fallaini of Manchester United and Axel Witsel from Zenit St Petersburg, Belgium fans would be forgiven for expecting their team to go far.
“Have you not been watching the European Championships ” he said when asked about the threat of Hungary.
“Did you see the Hungarians against Portugal Balazs Dzsudzsak, Adam Szalai, Krisztian Nemeth... lots of top players.
A recurring theme at these championships, which saw the number of teams increased from 16 to 24 with four third-placed group finishers joining the top two in the last 16, has been the emergence of traditionally smaller teams.
