MX23RW : Thursday, March 13 05:49:30| >> :600:9145805:9145805:

Jan Vertonghen: 'Belgium aiming for World Cup semi-finals'

Vertonghen: 'Belgium aiming for semis'
© Offside
Belgium centre-back Jan Vertonghen reveals that his side are aiming to reach at least the semi-finals of this summer's World Cup in Russia.

Belgium defender Jan Vertonghen has revealed that his side have set themselves a target of reaching at least the semi-finals at this summer's World Cup in Russia.

Belgium have only ever reached the last four of the competition once before, but the current crop of players are widely considered to be the country's greatest ever and they will go into the tournament as one of the favourites to lift the trophy.

Vertonghen admitted that this could be their best and last chance of crowning their 'golden generation', and believes that making it to the semis is a "realistic" target for Roberto Martinez's side.

"You speak about that peak here at Tottenham and it is even more so at Belgium, especially defensively," Vertonghen told reporters.

"I am one of the youngest! We have players like [Vincent] Kompany, [Thomas] Vermaelen, myself and Toby Alderweireld who are around our 30s, when you should be at your best. I think we are now.

"This could be the year where we need to reward ourselves. We have had great compliments before and now everyone knows what we can do. With Kevin De Bruyne, Eden [Hazard] or all the other guys where we are at, we should reward ourselves.

"You can ask 10 teams and they all want to win it. Brazil, Argentina, Spain, Germany, France. England are up there for me. To start, [the target is] the semi-finals, but you have to be lucky with the draw. The semi-finals are a realistic goal, and then hopefully more."

Belgium, who have been drawn alongside England in the group stages, were one of only four teams to go through the European section of qualifying undefeated.

ID:321810: cacheID:321810:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:2809:
Written by
Barney Corkhill
Restore Data
Share this article now:
Kevin De Bruyne in action during the Premier League game between Manchester City and Leicester City on February 10, 2018
Read Next:
De Bruyne aiming for World Cup glory
>
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool29217169274270
2Arsenal281510352242855
3Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest28156745331251
4Chelsea28147753361749
5Manchester CityMan City28145953381547
6Newcastle UnitedNewcastle2814594738947
7Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton28121064640646
8Aston Villa2912984145-445
9Bournemouth28128847341344
10Fulham2811984138342
11Crystal Palace2810993633339
12Brentford28115124844438
13Tottenham HotspurSpurs281041455411434
14Manchester UnitedMan Utd2897123440-634
15Everton2871293135-433
16West Ham UnitedWest Ham2896133248-1633
17Wolverhampton WanderersWolves2865173857-1923
18Ipswich TownIpswich2838172658-3217
19Leicester CityLeicester2845192562-3717
20Southampton2823232068-489


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!