Belgium's De Bruyne celebrates 100 caps with goal in a 2-0 win over Montenegro
Kevin De Bruyne scored on his 100th cap for Belgium, propelling his country to a 2-0 victory over Montenegro in Brussels on Wednesday in the first of two friendlies before the European Championship.
The Belgium captain scored a long-range shot a minute before halftime, putting his team ahead after the keeper was caught in no-man's land due to a defensive mix-up.
It was a cruel blow for English-born Matija Sarkic, who had kept a fast-paced Belgium attack at bay for nearly the entire half with a remarkable series of saves, particularly from Yannick Carrasco, who had four clear chances to open the scoring but was denied each time.
Leandro Trossard converted a penalty with the final kick of the game to double the score at the death.
A back pass in the 44th minute forced Millwall's Sarkic out of his box to try to clear, but Lois Openda challenged and the ball spilt for De Bruyne to sidefoot home from long range to mark his milestone game.
Sarkic made another brilliant save after the break when a deflected shot from Belgian debutant Maxim De Cuyper appeared to be heading into the corner, but he flung a hand at it, pushing it around the post.
Montenegro could have equalised on the break through Milutin Osmajic, who exposed the lack of speed of the returning 35-year-old Axel Witsel, who was playing his first game for Belgium since coming out of international retirement.
Koen Casteels, Belgium's keeper, saved Osmajic's effort on the hour mark.
Montenegro might have kept the score to a respectable single strike, but they had a late meltdown when Milos Brnovic was sent off for a second yellow card in the 88th minute, and substitute Stefan Mugosa tripped Jeremy Doku to concede the late penalty.
Doku, Lois Openda, and Trossard argued over who should take it before the latter tucked it away.
De Bruyne was substituted after the first half as Belgium made changes to give as many players as possible a run out before their Euro 2024 opener.
They will play a second warm-up friendly against Luxembourg in Brussels on Saturday before travelling to Germany next week.
Belgium's Euro 2024 opener is a Group E match against Slovakia on June 17 in Frankfurt. They also face Romania and Ukraine.
SportsLigue