September 10 – Following his side’s 2-0 defeat against France, Belgian captain Kevin De Bruyne slammed his teammates for “unacceptable things”, deepening the crisis mood around the Red Devils.
Belgium enjoyed a bright start in Lyon against the French, but quickly faded and fell to goals from Randal Kolo Muani and Ousmane Dembele. During the match, De Bruyne, Belgium’s leading player and a Manchester City stalwart, showed repeated irritation with his teammates.
In a post-match flash interview with Belgian broadcaster VTM, he lashed out and said: “I can’t say here what went wrong. I already did that to the team at halftime. I cannot repeat that in the media but it has to be better in every way. If the standard we want to reach is the best, but we’re no longer good enough to get to that level, then you have to give everything. If you don’t even do that, it’s over. I can accept that we’re not as good as in 2018. I was the first to say that, but other things are unacceptable. I’m not going to say what.”
Pressed, he explained: “We are too many at the back. If you stay with six at the back, there is no connection. It is what it is. It is not about transition, but about people who do not perform their tasks.”
Belgium had won their Nations League opener against Israel 3-1, but France yet again proved to be the team’s bogeyman. Les Bleus defeated Belgium in the semi-finals of both the 2018 World Cup and the round of 16 at Euro 2024. They also prevailed in a 2021 Nations League final-four encounter. Belgium last won a competitive match against France in 1981.
Belgian manager Domenico Tedesco reacted: “Kevin has the mentality of a winner. He is emotional and disappointed, and that’s fine.”
Tedesco has come under pressure after Belgium’s underwhelming second-round exit from the European Championship, which reflected a turbulent summer at the Belgian FA.
Operations director Jelle Schelstraete was dismissed and legal director Pegie Lys resigned. CEO Piet Vandendriessche also exited the KBVB while sporting director Frank Vercauteren, who is close to Tedesco, won’t have his contract renewed at the end of the year. He may still be retained in a different role.
Next month, Belgium return to Nations League action with matches against both Italy and France.
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