Furious Man City star Kevin De Bruyne slams 'unacceptable' team-mates (original) (raw)
Kevin De Bruyne cannot repeat what he told 'unacceptable' team-mates - 'It has to be better'
Belgium captain Kevin De Bruyne openly criticised his team-mates after his side suffered a 2-0 defeat at the hands of France in their second Nations League match on Monday
Kevin De Bruyne openly criticised his Belgium team-mates
Kevin De Bruyne slammed his Belgium team-mates for their “unacceptable” performance levels after his side were beaten by France in the Nations League.
The Manchester City playmaker was furious on Monday night after goals from Randal Kolo Muani and Ousmane Dembele condemned Belgium to a 2-0 loss in Lyon. Les Bleus bounced back from a damaging 3-1 defeat by Italy with a much-improved performance, despite leaving captain Kylian Mbappe on the bench.
Belgium had more of the ball but couldn’t make it count as Kolo Muani smashed in a loose ball to open the scoring in the first half before Dembele rifled in a second after the break. The goals left Belgium captain De Bruyne absolutely irate – and he didn’t hold back in his post-match media duties.
“I can’t say here what went wrong. I already did that to the team at half-time,” he told Belgian TV station VTM. “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.
Pressed on what went wrong in particular, 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 reached the semi-final of the 2018 World Cup in Russia thanks to their so-called ‘Golden Generation’, but standards have dropped in recent years, as the 1-0 defeat against France in the last-16 at Euro 2024 showed. "I can accept that we're not as good as in 2018," De Bruyne added. "I was the first to see that, but other things are unacceptable. I'm not going to say what."
Belgium manager Domenico Tedesco refused to criticise De Bruyne for his tirade, simply stating: "He is our captain and has a huge winning mentality, so he can also react emotionally.”
Ousmane Dembele scored France's second goal to seal their win (
Image:
FRANCK FIFE/AFP via Getty Images)
The Red Devils had made a promising start to their Nations League campaign, picking up a 3-1 win over Israel on Friday thanks to two goals from De Bruyne and one from Aston Villa midfielder Youri Tielemans. The side are ranked sixth in the world by FIFA, but second-placed France represent something of a bogey team, having also dumped them out of Euro 2024 in July.
“It would be a lie if I said that match is forgotten,” Tedesco said before the game. “It still hurts. I often think about the European Championship, but you also must look ahead. Looking back is not always the best solution.”
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