February 1 – Domenico Tedesco is on the brink of becoming the new coach of Belgium, succeeding Roberto Martinez who exited the Red Devils following a disappointing first-round elimination at last year’s World Cup.
Tedesco (pictured), who made a name for himself Schalke 04 and RB Leipzig, will reportedly sign a contract until 2024, having convinced the Belgian FA of his tactical qualities and stat-based approach to the game.
He led RB Leipzig to a German Cup victory as well as to a fourth-place finish in the Bundesliga and the semi-finals of the Europa League. He also enjoyed a spell at Spartak Moscow.
Tedesco will be assisted in his role by new technical director Franky Vercauteren, who has previously worked for the Belgian FA. Vercauteren has been out of a job since his departure from Antwerp.
Belgium exited the World Cup in Qatar in the group stages. In their curtain raiser they unconvincingly overcame Canada 1-0 before slumping to a 2-0 defeat to Morocco and a goalless draw against Croatia was not enough to keep them in the competition. Martinez, who had also been Belgium’s technical director, and the Belgian FA parted ways.
Joachim Low, Thierry Henry and Herve Renard were cited as potential candidates for the managerial role, but ultimately Tedesco and Peter Bosz made it to the final shortlist.
In March, Belgium will travel to Sweden to kick off their Euro 2024 qualifying campaign before playing tournament hosts Germany in a friendly in Koln. Tedesco and the Belgians should have little problem in their qualifying group with Austria, Azerbaijan and Estonia their opponents.
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