Romelu Lukaku is among the big names to have been dropped from the Belgium squad as Roberto Martinez focuses on youth.
The Chelsea striker joins the likes of Dries Mertens, Eden Hazard and Kevin De Bruyne, with Martinez opting to leave out players with more than 50 caps ahead of his team’s friendlies with the Republic of Ireland and Burkina Faso later this month.
Martinez is using the two matches to prepare for the World Cup in Qatar where top-ranked Belgium are expected to be among the contenders.
Youri Tielemans is the most experienced player selected with 47 caps while Jeremy Doku returns despite on-going injury concerns and Adnan Januzaj is recalled after more than a year out of the squad.
Squad:
Goalkeepers: Koen Casteels (VfL Wolfsburg), Thomas Kaminski (Blackburn Rovers), Simon Mignolet (Club Brugge), Matz Sels (Racing Strasbourg)
Defenders: Sebastiaan Bornauw (VfL Wolfsburg), Dedryck Boyata (Hertha Berlin), Jason Denayer (Olympique Lyonnais), Wout Faes, Thomas Foket (both Stade Reims), Arthur Theate (Atalanta), Siebe Van der Heyden (Union Saint Gilloise)
Midfielders: Charles De Ketelaere (Club Brugge), Leander Dendocker (Wolverhampton Wanderers), Thorgan Hazard (Borussia Dortmund), Adnan Januzaj (Real Sociedad), Oriel Mangala (VfB Stuttgart), Alexis Saelemaekers (AC Milan), Albert Sambi Lokoga (Arsenal), Youri Tielemans (Leicester City), Hans Vanaken (Club Brugge), Yari Verschaeren (Anderlecht)
Forwards: Michy Batshuayi (Besiktas), Christian Benteke (Crystal Palace), Jeremy Doku (Stade Rennes), Divock Origi (Liverpool), Leandro Trossard (Brighton & Hove Albion), Dante Vanzeir (Union Saint Gilloise).
Additional reporting from PA
