After France's 2-0 win over Belgium in the 2nd round of the UEFA A League, Belgium's central midfielder Kevin De Bruyne was interviewed by the media and gave a direct and candid assessment of his team's performance.
Responding to the problems that arose for Belgium in the match, De Bruyne pointed out that his team put too many players at the back, resulting in poor linkage on the field. "We put too many players at the back, with six players at the back, and there was no articulation." He emphasized that "it remained the same in the second half, even though we were on the back foot at the start, but that was the problem."
De Bruyne looked rather annoyed when asked if he was unhappy with the speed at which his team switched between offense and defense, a question he felt was inaccurate. "Seriously, I don't know what you're talking about." He retorted, "You've played football yourself and your question is tactically incorrect. It's not about the transition between offense and defense, it's about the way the game is played. The players didn't perform the tasks they were supposed to perform and that's what led to our trouble."
Talking about what Belgium need to improve on, De Bruyne appeared quite cautious, saying that he had already made suggestions to the team at halftime, but would not disclose the specifics in front of the media. "I can't say it here, I already said it to the team at halftime." He emphasized that "the team needs to improve in all areas. If you're not good enough then you have to give it your all, but some people don't even do that."
In addition, De Bruyne spoke about the team's current form in comparison to what it was at the 2018 World Cup. "I can accept that we are no longer at the level we were in 2018, I'm the first to say that." He confessed, "But there are some things that are unacceptable that I won't discuss in depth here. I did that at Henk when I was 18 and now I'm 33 and I don't do that anymore. You guys find out for yourselves."
