Star performers

Jan Vertonghen

Centre-back, 31, Tottenham Hotspur

The powerful central defender Vertonghen began his career at the prestigious Ajax youth academy and, after an early move back from midfield, was soon a key part of the Dutch side’s central defence. After impressing various European scouts, a move to Premier League side Tottenham followed in 2012 – he has been in north London ever since.

The 31-year-old, who at the time of writing sits on 99 caps, provides excellent stability across a variety of defensive positions. Predominantly a central defender, the left-footer can also play at left-back and, if needed, as an attacking left-sided wing-back. For Belgium, however, he is an obvious fit to start on the left of Roberto Martinez’s preferred back three – where, as with Spurs, his comfort on the ball allows him to help the build from deep.

Vertonghen is also a threat in the opposition’s penalty area. He scored crucial goals against both Greece and Bosnia during qualifying, and is already off the mark at the finals – he scored against South Korea in the group stages four years ago.

Kevin De Bruyne

Attacking midfielder, 26, Manchester City

One of the Premier League’s outstanding performers, De Bruyne (below, left) is not surprisingly an integral part of Belgium’s midfield. Despite a promising move to Chelsea from Genk in the summer of 2012, he struggled to break into the starting line-up and instead looked to Germany – first in a loan spell at Werder Bremen and then with a move to Wolfsburg – to rebuild momentum.

It worked. Since returning to England with Manchester City in the summer of 2015, De Bruyne has been superb. Most regularly used in an attacking midfield role, he has developed into a hugely versatile operator under Pep Guardiola, who has often used him in a deeper position from where he can influence short builds from the goalkeeper. It will be interesting to see if Martinez chooses to follow suit with one of his star men for Belgium.

De Bruyne turns 27 on the day his team faces England in what could prove the group decider. Having scored one and assisted two in Brazil four years ago, he could be approaching his peak for his second shot at a World Cup.