Belgium Euro 2024 squad: Who makes the cut? Which stars have missed out?

Belgium head coach Domenico Tedesco has selected his 25-player squad for Euro 2024.

UEFA confirmed earlier this month that squad sizes have been increased from 23 to 26 players for this year's eagerly-anticipated continental tournament, and all squads must include at least three goalkeepers.

While most nations took the approach of initially selecting a group of players that exceeds the squad limits with friendlies planned beforehand, Tedesco instead took a different decision.

Here, Sports Mole takes a look at the Belgium players that have been selected, and which players have missed out on being in contention for the tournament in Germany, which begins on June 14.

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Which Belgian stars have been selected?

Belgium's all-time leading goalscorer Romelu Lukaku is the headline name in this squad - the forward has netted 21 times for Roma this season.

Lukaku technically counts as a Premier League representative given his contract with Chelsea, and there are are eight other players from England's top flight that are present in the squad.

Manchester City's Kevin De Bruyne is the other star attraction, with City teammate Jeremy Doku and Arsenal's Leandro Trossard also tasked with contributing in the final third.

Midfield pair Youri Tielemans and Amadou Onana - of Aston Villa and Everton respectively - are also involved, as expected, with Nottingham Forest goalkeeper Matz Sels, Fulham full-back Timothy Castagne and Leicester City centre-back Wout Faes selected by Tedesco.

RB Leipzig star Lois Openda will hope to make an impact in attack, as will PSV Eindhoven's Johan Bakayoko and Atalanta BC's Charles De Ketelaere who have both enjoyed strong individual campaigns.

Thirty-seven-year-old defender Jan Vertonghen will hope to add to his 154 caps, while Axel Witsel is a surprise inclusion having announced his international retirement last year.

Which Belgian stars will miss Euro 2024?

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Goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois has recently recovered from a serious knee injury to to make four starts for Real Madrid in La Liga.

However, the 32-year-old has been left out by Tedesco. As well as a public fallout with his head coach last year over the captaincy, Courtois has previously acknowledged he would not participate at the tournament.

Michy Batshuayi has also been omitted, despite his 27 goals from 55 appearances in a Belgium shirt. The 30-year-old only made four starts for Fenerbahce in Super Lig this campaign, yet ended it with 12 strikes.

What are Belgium's pre-tournament plans?

Belgium played Montenegro on June and came away with a 2-0 victory, before they backed that up with a 3-0 success over Luxembourg, Lukaku scoring two of the goals to take his international tally to 85.

Their first fixture in Euro 2024 is not until June 17, when they play Slovakia, with matches against Romania and Ukraine to follow.

Belgium's 25-player provisional squad in full

Goalkeepers: Koen Casteels (Wolfsburg), Thomas Kaminski (Luton Town), Matz Sels (Nottingham Forest)

Defenders: Timothy Castagne (Fulham), Maxim De Cuyper (Club Brugge), Zeno Debast (Anderlecht), Wout Faes (Leicester City), Thomas Meunier (Trabzonspor), Jan Vertonghen (Anderlecht), Arthur Theate (Rennes), Axel Witsel (Atletico Madrid)

Midfielders: Yannick Carrasco (Al Shabab), Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester City), Orel Mangala (Lyon), Amadou Onana (Everton), Youri Tielemans (Aston Villa), Arthur Vermeeren (Atletico Madrid), Aster Vranckx (Wolfsburg)

Forwards: Johan Bakayoko (PSV Eindhoven), Charles De Ketelaere (Atalanta BC), Jeremy Doku (Manchester City), Romelu Lukaku (Roma), Dodi Lukebakio (Sevilla), Lois Openda (RB Leipzig), Leandro Trossard (Arsenal).

Group and fixtures

June 17: Belgium 0-1 Slovakia (5pm | Deutsche Bank Park, Frankfurt)
June 22: Belgium 2-0 Romania (8pm | RheinEnergieStadion, Cologne)
June 26: Ukraine 0-0 Belgium (5pm | MHPArena, Stuttgart)