TV viewers could clearly see the laser beam being shone into De Bruyne’s face when he took a set piece for Belgium in the first half of the match against Ukraine. During the direct free kick in the 32nd minute, De Bruyne had to complain to referee Anthony Taylor about the situation. That caused the match to be stopped so that the stadium management could remind the fans.

Kevin De Bruyne was hit in the face with a laser beam by a Ukrainian fan during a free kick

The truth is that the Ukrainian fans’ worries were well-founded. In a direct free kick situation, De Bruyne surprised goalkeeper Trubin with a straight kick from a long distance and almost scored a goal.

Belgium and Ukraine played out a goalless draw in their final Group E match. The result left Belgium in second place in the group and they will face France in the round of 16. Not only that, Belgium is also in a difficult group with many big names such as Spain, Portugal and Germany.

Meanwhile, Ukraine had to stop at Euro 2024 despite having 4 points in total. Serhiy Rebrov’s team was at a disadvantage in the final match due to the worst goal difference in Group E after losing 0-3 to Romania in the opening match.

Belgium’s performances at Euro 2016 have been far from convincing. They lost to Slovakia in their first match and were held to a 0-0 draw by Ukraine. However, fans will probably only truly appreciate Belgium’s strength when the tournament moves to the knockout stages.