Domenico Tedesco led Belgium to the European Championship this past summer without a defeat and was long regarded as a great coaching talent by our southern neighbors. After a poorly executed tournament, the pressure on the national coach has suddenly increased significantly.
Domenico Tedesco’s tenure as Belgium’s national coach, once full of promise, has quickly turned into a period of intense scrutiny following the team's disappointing performance at Euro 2024.
After leading the Red Devils to qualification for the tournament without a single defeat, Tedesco had been regarded as a breath of fresh air, a tactical innovator who could rejuvenate a team that had grown stagnant under his predecessor, Roberto Martínez. However, the early exit from the Euros, coupled with high-profile disputes and questionable decisions, has shifted public and media perception dramatically.
One of the most significant factors contributing to the mounting pressure on Tedesco was his public fallout with star goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois. The dispute, which saw Courtois step away from the national team temporarily, created a rift that cast doubts on the coach’s ability to manage high-profile players effectively. Furthermore, Tedesco’s decisions to leave key figures like Romelu Lukaku, Yannick Carrasco, and Leandro Trossard out of crucial matches only intensified the criticism. These moves were seen by many as risky, if not reckless, with the coach accused of sidelining experienced players who could have made a difference in Belgium’s Euro 2024 campaign.
As Het Nieuwsblad highlighted, the pressure surrounding Belgium’s upcoming Nations League matches, particularly the one against Israel, is unusual given that such fixtures would typically not be considered high-stakes. Yet, after the Euros debacle, every game has become a test for Tedesco. The Belgian media pointed out that his admission of mistakes while courageous has only served to make him more vulnerable. "The mea culpa from last week was brave, but it only made him more vulnerable," noted Het Nieuwsblad, reflecting on how quickly the narrative around Tedesco has shifted from optimism to doubt.
The perception that Tedesco’s tactical acumen, once celebrated, has now been overshadowed by fear-based decision-making is particularly damning. Het Laatste Nieuws described how the coach, initially praised for his fresh ideas, is now labeled a "coward." The swift turnaround in public opinion from seeing him as a forward-thinking innovator to someone overly cautious underscores the volatile nature of coaching at the top level, especially when results do not meet expectations.
Despite the growing calls for change, Gazet Van Antwerpen suggests that Tedesco’s immediate future is secure, primarily due to financial constraints within the Belgian Football Federation. The decision to extend his contract until 2026 before the Euros has left the federation in a difficult position. "Dismissing Tedesco is complicated because it would cost the Belgian Football Federation a lot of money," the newspaper notes, emphasizing that the financial strain would likely prevent any hasty moves. For now, Tedesco’s job appears safe, though the pressure to deliver meaningful results in the Nations League and beyond remains intense.
Tedesco’s challenges also extend to the structural issues within Belgian football. As De Standaard pointed out, Tedesco had long expressed his desire for longer training camps to instill his philosophy and tactical ideas in the team. However, his time with the squad has been limited, and the early failure at the Euros has left him scrambling to make improvements quickly. The upcoming Nations League matches offer a crucial opportunity for Tedesco to recalibrate and demonstrate that his ideas can still work with this group of players. These matches, while important for the short-term, also have implications for the 2025-2026 World Cup campaign, which is already looming on the horizon.
Adding to the personal disappointment for Tedesco is the fact that, in the spring, he reportedly turned down an offer from Napoli, where he would have been allowed to juggle his duties as both club and national team coach. That decision, made when his stock was still high, now seems particularly painful, given how quickly the situation with Belgium has deteriorated. Het Laatste Nieuws described this twist as especially unfortunate for the young coach, who finds himself under fire just months after being seen as the ideal man to lead the Red Devils into a new era.
The drastic shift in opinion surrounding Tedesco is emblematic of the broader challenges faced by national team managers, where success can be fleeting, and the margin for error is slim. With Belgium's "Golden Generation" aging and the next generation still finding its feet, Tedesco must now navigate not only tactical challenges but also the intense scrutiny that comes with managing one of Europe’s most high-profile teams. His next few games could be critical in determining whether he can regain the trust of both the fans and the federation, or if his time as Belgium’s head coach will come to a premature end.
