Asked who in the history of Belgian football can best represent the national team, Vermant said every one of those great players like Paul Van Himst, Vincenzo Scifo and Marc Wilmots "had a big impact on Belgian football in different generations."

"In the time when Van Himst played, there was not so much international football with broadcast like it is now," he said, adding that Scifo, Wilmots and himself all belong to roughly the same era in which Belgian players began to play overseas.

"In my time, when I went to Schalke, maybe there were three or four (Belgian) players who were playing abroad in different competitions," Vermant said, referring to FC Schalke 04 of the German Bundesliga, for which he played between 2001 and 2005.

"Now it's almost the opposite. Almost all the players in the national team are playing outside Belgium," he added.

The Weifang Cup, now in its 11th year, is China's signature annual youth football tournament for international clubs. A cradle for future football stars, the event has seen the participation of over 100 clubs from some 20 countries, including Argentina, Brazil, Germany, Italy and Spain.

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