After Belgium were held by Netherlands, coach Roberto Martinez insisted his side had plenty of depth.
Belgium coach Roberto Martinez played down concerns over his team’s depth after their 1-1 draw with Netherlands on Tuesday.
Martinez made five changes to his starting XI after a win over Switzerland and saw his side held in Brussels, ending their four-match winning streak.
But while the Spaniard said he had a core starting side, Martinez added that Belgium also had plenty of depth.
“We are a team that is trying to develop youngsters that we’re trying to give opportunities but we’ve got a very established starting XI,” he said.
“It’s not about the amount of players that you have, it’s about the way you work as a team, the way you perform as a team, and this team is keeping the same standards that we had at the World Cup.
“I wouldn’t say that we’ve got a lack of numbers, or a lack of replacements, no, not at all.”
Dries Mertens had given Belgium a fifth-minute lead against Netherlands, but the visitors equalised through Arnaut Groeneveld in the first half.
Martinez said his side’s performance dipped after they conceded in the 27th minute, although he was relatively pleased.
“Unfortunately, we gave a ball away that cost us the goal and that probably brought us some doubts, there was a different performance after the goal, but we didn’t give in,” he said.
“With a lot of changes we showed that we have a group of players who share the same mentality, and it’s where you build a team, around that mentality and that togetherness.”
Belgium will resume their Nations League slate in November, when they face off against Iceland and Switzerland respectively.
The Red Devils currently sit on six points, which is level on points with the Swiss at the top of Group 2 in Nations League A.