Lukaku ‘not fit’, still in Belgium’s World Cup squa

Belgium’s top scorer Romelu Lukaku is not fully fit, but coach Rudi Garcia still included him in the World Cup squad on Friday.

Lukaku, who has scored 89 goals in 124 international appearances, has struggled with both form and fitness this season for Italian club Napoli.

The 33-year-old former Inter Milan and Chelsea striker played just 69 minutes for the first team in 2026. He is currently sidelined with a back injury.

“Romelu has recovered from his injury, but he is not fully fit. I am not sure if he will be able to start or not. But he is our best striker and the highest scorer in Belgium’s history,” French coach Garcia told reporters.

He added, “We have five weeks to get him fully fit so he can gradually help the team.”

Lille forward Matias Fernandez-Pardo previously played for Spain’s Under-21 team, but has now been called up to the Belgium team for the first time after changing countries.

On the other hand, the absence of Lois Opender, who played 33 times for Belgium, is quite surprising. He scored just one goal in 24 matches this season after joining Juventus on loan from Leipzig.

There are no other major surprises, with stars like Kevin De Bruyne, Thibaut Courtois and Jeremy Doucoux in Garcia’s 26-man squad.

Belgium’s World Cup campaign begins with a match against Egypt in Seattle on June 15. They will then face Iran in Los Angeles and New Zealand in Vancouver in Group G.

The team was eliminated from the group stage of the 2022 World Cup. Their ‘golden generation’ missed out on their last chance to win a major trophy due to internal infighting.

Even in the 2024 Euro, they barely made it past the group stage and were eliminated by France in the last 16.

Garcia, a former Napoli, Roma and Marseille coach, took over at Belgium in January 2025, following the sacking of Domenico Tedesco.