Belgium, Lukaku, and the major tournament suspension

Romelu Lukaku has scored 85 goals for Belgium in 116 games since making his debut in March 2010. Whatever measure you use to evaluate it, that strike rate is excellent. Of the 85 goals, 14 (from 29 shots) came from him during the Euro qualifying campaign. As it stands, though, we will remember him more for his misses than his accomplishments.

When running for the opposition goal, the 1.91-meter striker can be a formidable presence, but when faced with a situation requiring delicacy or technical skill, he frequently trips over his own feet.

Only mathematically speaking, Belgium's loss to Slovakia in their Euro opener qualifies as a surprise. In the history of the European Championship, this upset caused the biggest gap in the FIFA World Rankings (45 places) between Belgium and Slovakia (48th and third, respectively). But if you ignore the rankings and concentrate on their performance in important competitions, you'll find that a mistake was always likely.

There are several other players on this team besides Lukaku. Leandro Trossard just finished an incredible season with Arsenal, Jeremy Doku of Manchester City is a trickster that any team would love to have, and Jan Vertonghen gives some seasoned grit to the defense. Kevin De Bruyne can play for almost any elite squad. Class exists in practically every position. However, place them in a situation where they sense everyone's attention and they become frozen.

ESPN statistics show that in important events, Belgium has failed to score on any of its last 47 shots on goal, missing 11 excellent opportunities. They perform brilliantly when there is no pressure. However, as Slovakia was evidently aware, put them under pressure, and their fragility frequently surfaces.