Marouane Fellaini, Christian Benteke and Simon Mignolet withdraw from Belgium squad through injury

According to reports the Crystal Palace striker is suffering from a minor knee issue while the Liverpool goalkeeper has a hand problem

Liam Twomey
Thursday 06 September 2018 16:43 BST
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Marouane Fellaini, Christian Benteke and Simon Mignolet have withdrawn from the Belgium squad to face Scotland and Iceland through injury.

All three men have returned to their clubs for further assessment, though Liverpool confirmed that Mignolet is expected to be available for Saturday’s match against Tottenham.

Fellaini was included in Roberto Martinez’s squad on the back of his first start of the season for United in last weekend’s 2-0 away win over Burnley in the Premier League.

Benteke has started all of Crystal Palace’s opening four league matches but is yet to score, and has found the net just twice in 20 appearances in 2018.

(AFP/Getty Images)

The exact nature of the injuries was not disclosed by the Belgian Football Association, who also declined to clarify whether or not they will call up replacements.

According to reports in Belgium, Benteke is suffering from a minor knee issue, while Mignolet is dealing with a hand problem.

Belgium travel to Glasgow to take on Scotland in a friendly at Hampden Park on Friday, before travelling to Reykjavik for their Uefa Nations League opener against Iceland.

The games will be Martinez’s first opportunity to work with his players since July, when Belgium wrapped up an impressive World Cup campaign in Russia with a convincing 2-0 victory over England in Saint Petersburg to secure a third-place finish.

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