During Tuesday’s football World Cup, the alleged internal conflicts of the Belgian team have been talked about. Belgium is in a tight spot in the starting group F. It will meet on Thursday 1.12. Croatia in their last group game.
At the 2018 World Championships, Belgium won bronze. In the Fifa ranking, it is second, after Brazil.
Block F:
Before the tournament, Belgium’s star player, representing Manchester City at club level Kevin De Bruyne gave In an interview with The Guardin (you go to another service) skeptical statements about his team’s chances. He said the team is too old to be champions. In addition, De Bruyne said that the World Cup tournament does not feel right when it is played in Qatar and in the middle of the club season.
Among the key players, for example, De Bruyne is 31 years old, Axel Witsel 33 years old, Eden Hazard 31 years old, injured Romelu Lukaku 29 years old, Jan Vertonghen 35 years old and Toby Alderweireld 33 years old.
Ylen experts Miika Nuutinen and Jonne Kunnasen in the age distribution analysis, it was stated that for Belgium the tournament would seem to be the last of the “golden generation”, there are few key players left in their prime and especially the defense is full of experience.
Real Madrid and Belgium winger Hazard, on the other hand, stated before the shock loss to Morocco that the team had a better chance of winning the World Cup gold in 2018.
– Our defenders are not the fastest, and they know it, Hazard had said after the Morocco game, among other things According to the Telegraph (you’ll switch to another service).
Did the topper tease the captain?
On Tuesday, a French newspaper L’Equipe reports (you go to another service), that Vertonghen had violently clashed with Hazard and De Bruyne after the Morocco defeat. According to the newspaper, Lukaku was needed to separate the quarrelsome boys from each other in the dressing room.
– There are a lot of things on my mind at the moment, but it’s better to leave them unsaid, at least in front of the camera, Vertonghen had stated to the media after the Morocco defeat, reported by Le Parisien (you will be transferred to another service).
After that, however, the topper continued sarcastically, according to the magazine:
– What went wrong? Maybe the fact that we don’t attack well enough is also because our attackers are too old.
Belgian magazine Nieuwsblad reviews (you switch to another service)that Vertonghen was unhappy with the kind of text Belgian captain Hazard had released.
– There is no doubt: There is a lot of tension among the Red Devils. Disputes around the national team are forbidden, but it is clear that something is brewing, the Belgian newspaper estimates.
The Konkars arrived at the press conference to calm the situation
On Monday, the Belgian team held a “crisis meeting” according to the media. On Tuesday, there was a press conference in the program, in which the Belgian players had to participate Yannick Carrasco and By Arthur Theate. According to Reuters, however, Hazard and the experienced top keeper arrived at the event Thibaut Courtois to quell rumors of disputes.
– We had a good conversation between the players. Much has been said. We talked for an hour about good and less good things. Now we want to win against Croatia, Hazard said.
According to Hazard and Courtois, nothing special happened in the dressing room. According to them, only the coach spoke after the defeat Roberto Martinez.
– The problem is that too many lies are spread. A situation that does not exist is described. As a group we have to avoid this negativity, Courtois said.
The duo admitted that the team has problems with their confidence. According to De Bruyne, that is the reason for the blocked attacking game.
– Everything was cleared up yesterday. Everyone has openly expressed their opinion. Now we have to take action on the field. Good thing we had a group discussion. We told each other what we thought, Courtois stated.
After the defeat against Morocco, head coach Martinez also commented on De Bruyne’s claims about the aging of the team. He said at the press conference that he heard about the comment for the first time.
– We are all professionals and know how to act. The player gets to express his point of view. We have been together for six years and the comments are not helping us win. Maybe it was a bluff.
Martinez admitted after the loss that the lack of joy in the game shone from his team.
– Maybe it’s because of the weight on our shoulders. We’ve played the last two games like we have something to lose.
The reporters also asked Martinez why the best Kevin De Bruyne has not been seen in the tournament.
– We haven’t seen the best of Belgium yet. It’s not just Kevin, it’s the whole team. “Football is a team sport and by working together, an individual can reach a higher level,” answered Martinez.