Belgium vs. Ireland: Score and Twitter Reaction from Euro 2016

Belgium rebounded from a frustrating defeat against Italy and moved into second place in Group E of Euro 2016 with an emphatic 3-0 victory over Republic of Ireland on Saturday at the Nouveau Stade de Bordeaux in Bordeaux, France.

Romelu Lukaku scored twice and Axel Witsel also found the net as part of a second-half attacking surge from the Red Devils that left the Green Army with no answers. It was a much-needed outburst for one of the pre-tournament favorites after a sluggish start to the competition.

Let's check out the updated Group E table heading into Wednesday's final fixtures:

Rank	Team	MP	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	PTS
1	Italy	2	2	0	0	3	0	+3	6
2	Belgium	2	1	0	1	3	2	+1	3
3	Sweden	2	0	1	1	1	2	-1	1
4	Ireland	2	0	1	1	1	4	-3	1

Belgium struggled to find an attacking rhythm against a defensively strong Italian side in their tournament-opening 2-0 loss Monday. Head coach Marc Wilmots stated ahead of Saturday's clash that he wanted to see a more hard-nosed effort from his talented side, per Frank Griffiths of the Associated Press.

"What I missed was grit and aggression," Wilmots said. "If we think that everything will come by itself, we are heading the wrong way."

The Red Devils produced a far more encouraging start as they controlled 62 per cent possession during the opening half hour. They nearly found the scoreboard in the 25th minute as Yannick Ferreira-Carrasco headed home a rebound, but he was correctly ruled offside.

Jason Le Miere of the International Business Times commented on the improved offensive play, led by Manchester City star Kevin De Bruyne:

Belgium continued to apply pressure during the latter stages of the first half, sending several hopeful crosses into dangerous areas amid extended stretches of play in the attacking third. The Irish back line was up to the task, holding the world's second-ranked side to just two shots on target before the break.

Dundee defender and Ireland international Darren O'Dea summed up the first 45 minutes:

"

For all of Belgium's possession they haven't created too much. Ireland need to be better when they get the ball back. But take that at HT!

— Darren O'Dea (@odea_darren) June 18, 2016"

The BBC's Match of the Day showcased the vastly different tactics:

It look less than three minutes after half-time to break the deadlock.

A sudden sense of urgency from the Red Devils, which had been missing throughout their first three halves of the tournament, resulted in a long-awaited goal. De Bruyne found Lukaku making an open run toward the box, and he slotted a left-footed shot into the corner before the Irish defence could recover.

OptaJoe noted the goal continued a recent run of strong form with the national team for the Everton striker:

Belgium increased their lead shortly after the hour mark as the Ireland defence once again got caught not putting enough pressure on the ball.

The Belgians worked the ball around the perimeter of the box for around 10 seconds without getting challenged before Thomas Meunier floated in a perfect cross to Witsel. The Zenit Saint Petersburg midfielder made no mistake, powering a header past Darren Randolph to make it 2-0.

AS English spotlighted the defensive lapse:

Lukaku erased any remaining doubt in the 70th minute as he netted his second goal of the match. The Green Army started pushing more numbers forward trying to salvage at least a draw, and Belgium caught them with a quick counter-attack. Eden Hazard assisted on the striker's easy finish.

Although it took a while to find their form, the second half represented what the Red Devils are capable of when firing on all cylinders, as Gary Lineker of BBC Sport discussed:

WhoScored.com passed along the final numbers:

Belgium must now prepare for a match with Sweden on Wednesday. The Zlatan Ibrahimovic-led squad have failed miserably in the attacking third so far in the competition, so the Red Devils can expect them to take some risks in a match that could decide second place in the group.

The outlook becomes far more grim for Ireland following the defeat. They'll now need a victory over Italy in the group finale in order to give themselves a chance to advance. The only silver lining for the Boys in Green is the fact the Azzurri may rest some players after clinching a spot in the knockout phase.

Post-Match Reaction

Green Army head coach Martin O'Neill admitted the defensive play in the second half simply wasn't good enough against a side like Belgium, according to the Football Association of Ireland.

"The goals we gave away were not great from our viewpoint," he said. "We looked nervous on the ball and gave it away too easily."

Gary Rose of BBC Sport provided comments from Wilmots about getting his squad to stick together and the importance of Lukaku up front:

"

Unity is very important. We win and lose together.

With [Lukaku], we wanted to give him some confidence. I think he scored four goals in four matches but when he missed against Italy everyone was saying it's all different. I just needed to explain things to him and make sure he knew I trusted him. He did what I expected today.

"

Following his brace, the Belgian striker talked about how well the side bounced back, but also the need to immediately start focusing on the next challenge, per UEFA.com.

"The team responded very well," Lukaku said. "We did what we had to do, we had to play good football and keep a clean sheet. That's what we did; now on to the next game."

All match statistics courtesy of the tournament's official site.