Of the four survivors from 2014 and 2018, 34-year-old Courtois has played every minute of this tournament, but De Bruyne, Lukaku and Witsel have featured far less regularly.
Central midfielder Witsel, 37, who left relegated Girona at the end of the La Liga season, was brought on for a single minute at the end of the win over the USA.
At 33, Lukaku has scored an impressive three goals but has done so by playing fewer than 50% of minutes, often coming on as a substitute and taking advantage of a tired defence reeling from the strong pressing of 25-year-old Atalanta forward Charles De Ketelaere.
And De Bruyne, now 35, was injured during the Senegal game – before his departure Belgium had won one out of three matches, but since then they have won twice and scored seven goals in roughly 130 minutes of play.
Full-back Thomas Meunier also played in the 2018 tournament, but not 2014, and his minutes played have decreased as the tournament has gone on.
None of that is to say the more senior players are not contributing – Courtois remains one of the world’s best goalkeepers, Lukaku’s goals have been crucial, and De Bruyne’s performances were among the team’s best before his unfortunate injury.
But their role in the squad is changing, with a greater reliance on them making the difference in key moments rather than taking responsibility for the overall quality of the team’s performances.
So far at least, Garcia and Belgium appear to handling the transition better than many teams do when their stars begin to fade.
