Three Tottenham Hotspur players named to Belgium preliminary EURO squad

Tottenham Hotspur has four Belgians on its squad at present, but only three of them will be going to this summer's European Championships in France. Belgium manager Marc Wilmots named his 24-man preliminary team, and Tottenham players Toby Alderweireld, Jan Vertonghen, and Mousa Dembele all made the cut. Nacer Chadli, however, did not.

This isn't a total shock; Chadli has been mostly a bit player for Spurs this season, relegated mostly to Europa League and domestic cup starts and the occasional late-match impact substitution. It is, of course, hugely disappointing for Chadli, but he tweeted his support for the Red Devils and his teammates.

Wilmots will cut one additional name from his team in order to get down to a 23-man roster. One would suspect the final casualty will be a defender; Wilmots named nine defenders to the preliminary roster and only four midfielders, though players like Alderweireld and Vertonghen CAN play central defensive midfield if needed. The lopsided nature of this squad makes Chadli's omission a little surprising, even if he hasn't been getting a lot of league minutes.

Belgium preliminary EURO 2016 squad

Goalkeepers: Thibaut Courtois (Chelsea), Jean-Francois Gillett (Mechelen), Simon Mignolet (Liverpool)

Defenders: Toby Alderweireld (Tottenham Hotspur), Dedryck Boyata (Celtic), Jason Denayer (Galatasaray), Bjorn Engels (Club Bruges), Nicolas Lombaerts (Zenit St Petersburg), Jordan Lukaku (Oostende), Thomas Meunier (Club Bruges), Thomas Vermaelen (Barcelona), Jan Vertonghen (Tottenham Hotspur)

Midfielders: Moussa Dembele (Tottenham Hotspur), Marouane Fellaini (Manchester United), Radja Nainggolan (AS Roma), Axel Witsel (Zenit St Petersburg)

Forwards: Michy Batshauyi (Olympique Marseille), Christian Benteke (Liverpool), Yannick Carrasco (Atletico Madrid), Kevin de Bruyne (Manchester City), Eden Hazard (Chelsea), Romelu Lukaku (Everton), Dries Mertens (Napoli), Divock Origi (Liverpool)