Dries Mertens stole the show by having a hand in four goals as Belgium thrashed Estonia 8-1 in World Cup qualifying to capitalise on Greece’s draw with Bosnia-Herzegovina and take charge of Group H.
Things looked ominous for Estonia very early on as Belgium cruised into a comfortable 2-0 lead inside 16 minutes thanks to goals from Thomas Meunier and Mertens.
Hazard opened up a three-goal cushion with a fine Mertens-inspired effort, though Henri Anier’s goal just before the half-hour mark saw Belgium’s defence breached for the first time in qualifying.
There was never any danger of a comeback and Yannick Carrasco netted Belgium’s fourth after 62 minutes to round off a brilliant team move, before Ragnar Klavan directed a Mertens cross into his own goal.
The magnificent Mertens added a glorious sixth with 22 minutes to go when Lukaku took over in the final 10 minutes, drilling a left-footed effort in after good play by Kevin De Bruyne, before rounding things off with a smart finish into the bottom-right corner after being released by substitute Youri Tielemans, as Belgium eased to a maximum 12 points from four matches, leaving them two clear of Greece.
Standings after 4 games
1. Belgium 12p
2. Greece 10p
3. Bosnia-Herzegovina 7p
4. Cyprus 3
5. Estonia 3
6. Gibraltar 0
