Belgium captain Kevin De Bruyne criticize his teammates following a disappointing 2-0 defeat to France in their Nations League encounter on Monday.
The midfielder’s frustration was palpable throughout the Group A2 match, and in a post-game interview with Belgian VTM television, he expressed his discontent, stating that numerous aspects of the game had gone awry.
This outburst was not an isolated incident, as De Bruyne had similarly voiced his displeasure after Belgium’s European Championship exit to France this summer.
On that occasion, France emerged victorious with a 1-0 win in the round of 16, and De Bruyne‘s sentiments on Monday echoed his sentiments from the Euro loss in Germany.
“I can’t say here what went wrong. I already did that to the team at half-time.”
Read Also: Transfer Gossip Today: Juventus Open To Arthur Melo Offers
“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,” the 33-year-old De Bruyne said of the side that reached the World Cup semifinals in Russia.
“I was the first to see that, but other things are unacceptable. I’m not going to say what.”
Coach Domenico Tedesco said he understood De Bruyne’s anger.
“He is our captain and has a huge winning mentality, so he can also react emotionally,”
France overcame a slow start to redeem themselves after a 3-1 loss to Italy on Friday,
as Randal Kolo Muani‘s close-range strike and Ousmane Dembele‘s left-foot drive handed them their first points of their Nations League campaign.
And when De Bruyne was pressed in the interview as to what went wrong, he did point out one problem.
“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.”
