One night in August, the stadium at Stamford Bridge offered a glimpse into the future.

It was the first match day of the English Premier League, season 2013/2014, Chelsea vs Hull City.

On the wide positions, home team coach José Mourinho fielded two 22-year-olds: Kevin de Bruyne and Eden Hazard.

And at the latest when Mourinho replaced 21-year-old Romelu Lukaku in the 90th minute, it was clear: They were not looking at the English future that evening, but at the Belgian one.

Christopher Meltzer

Sports correspondent in Munich.

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Now, nine years later, de Bruyne, Hazard and Lukaku are playing the fifth major football tournament for Belgium.

With their skills, they ensured that their national team has never failed before the quarter-finals since then.

Midfielder de Bruye with his passes, attacker Hazard with his dribbles, striker Lukaku with his goals.

Once, in Russia 2018, they almost reached the final of the World Cup that way – and with the help of goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois' saves.

They lost 1-0 to France, the eventual winners, in the semifinals.

In American sport, one would say that de Bruyne, Hazard and Lukaku are the "Big Three" of the team.

And because they have to play Canada this Wednesday of the World Cup in Qatar (in the FAZ live ticker for the World Cup, on ARD and on MagentaTV), you can also make an NBA comparison: No, de Bruyne, Hazard and Lukaku are not Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen and Dennis Rodman, but yes, they probably have their last dance coming up in Qatar.

There have been discussions for weeks about how well this national team, this so-called golden generation, can still play.

These discussions are not only initiated by the press, but by the protagonists themselves. "The level of 2018, I don't have it anymore," said Eden Hazard, who was perhaps the most spectacular player in the World Cup at the time, the "L'Equipe".

He admitted his head and body have suffered a lot since joining Real Madrid in the summer of 2019 for €115m.

He has only been allowed to play 72 times since then – and still says: "If my body allows it, I can still do great things."

If Belgium is going to do anything big this winter, it's because of Kevin de Bruyne, probably the best player on what's probably the best team in the world right now: Manchester City.

He needs to compensate that Hazard can no longer be a dribble-for-dribble hazard.

He has to compensate that Romelu Lukaku will miss at least the group games against Canada and Morocco through injury.

He has to compensate for the fact that the players who otherwise support the "Big Three" significantly, such as Jan Vertonghen, Axel Witsel or Dries Mertens, are significantly older than 30 years.

And so for de Bruyne and the best generation of Belgian football in Qatar, where there are VVIP areas for Very, Very Important Persons at the World Cup: It will probably really be their Very, Very Last Dance.