Nottingham Forest midfielder Orel Mangala has ‘seduced’ Belgium manager Domenico Tedesco, who believes his qualities will allow Kevin de Bruyne to really shine for the Red Devils.
That’s according to Manu Jous and Lancelot Meulewater, who have praised the Nottingham Forest man as part of RTBF’s ‘Team Foot’.
They’ve been looking at the Belgium squad and assessing who the currents winners of the group are, with various players having been handed a chance to shine by Tedesco and taking that opportunity with both hands.
The Belgium boss has been keen to change things around in the group since his arrival after the World Cup, handing opportunities and key roles to players who barely featured under Martinez.
That’s certainly the case for Mangala, who alongside playing a big role in Nottingham Forest’s midfield has been handed a key place in Tedesco’s Belgian midfield.
That’s something he’s embraced and proven to be worthy of, with Jous and Meulewater both praising the midfielder today and suggesting that he’s completely won over the Belgium manager.
“We were waiting for the Onana confirmation, the Lavia revelation or the Tielemans resurrection, we especially had the Mangala affirmation,” said Jous.
“Six times holder, involved in all the matches of the campaign, he seems the most assured of all of a starting position in front of the defense.
“With Martinez, he was only entitled to two ends of friendly matches against Ireland and Burkina… His discipline and his volume of play visibly seduced Tedesco.
“Eager to develop a tactical system in which a central midfield pair takes care of the dirty work to make Kevin De Bruyne shine, the German coach preferentially relies on the Nottingham Forest player,” added Meulewater.
