Belgium vs Russia: Red Devils look to begin EUROs with a splash on June 12th

Topics: TV Schedules, Belgium, Russia, UEFA EURO 2020

Belgium, the world's no 1 side will look to begin their EURO campaign with a bang as they take on Russia on Saturday, June 12th.

Preview: Belgium vs Russia

Belgium, who are currently ranked no. 1 in the world as per FIFA, will come into the EURO 2020 tournament with a lot of pressure on their shoulders. The Red Devils still have yet to win a major international trophy, and there are some who have questioned their ranking given their empty trophy cabinet. As such, Roberto Martinez's side, who finished in third place at the 2018 World Cup, will be hoping to make amends for their disappointing showing at EURO 2016, which saw them dumped out by Wales in the quarter-finals.

The Red Devils cruised through qualifiers by winning all ten of their matches, and are the natural favorites to top a very comfortable quartet comprised of Denmark, Russia, and debutant side Finland. In fact, anything but a top two finish in this group would be nothing short of a failure for a side of Belgium's caliber. However, Martinez's side haven't been exactly in top form in their warm-up ties, drawing Greece and laboring to a slim 1-0 win over Croatia.

That being said, a team's performance in pre-tournament friendlies isn't necessarily indicative of how they will do once the big show gets up and running. Belgium will come into this tournament on a nine game unbeaten streak across all comps, and more important, have an excellent track record against upcoming opponents Russia, with five wins from their last seven meetings with the Eastern European nation.

Russia, meanwhile, also had a very strong EURO 2020 qualifying campaign. Stanislav Cherchesov's side won eight of their ten games, with their only two losses being to none other than Belgium, so they'll be hoping to try to get a spot of revenge on the Red Devils when they meet up once again on Saturday. Of course, hoping for revenge and getting it are two different things, as they'll need to play an absolutely flawless game to have a shot at beating the top-ranked team in the world.

Team news: Belgium vs Russia

Belgium: Although skipper Eden Hazard made a cameo appearance during Belgium's narrow win over Croatia, there are concerns as to whether the Real Madrid man will be able to feature in the starting XI here. In addition, Axel Witsel and Kevin De Bruyne are unlikely to feature as they are not fully fit.

Russia: By contrast, Russia have no injury concerns heading into this match, meaning that they can field their strongest starting XI.

Match facts: Belgium vs Russia

This will be the eighth meeting between Belgium and Russia
The Red Devils have won five and drawn the other two of their prior seven clashes with their opponents