Thibaut Courtois has downplayed rumors of a fight in the Belgium camp and claims that, if found out, the source of the “fake news” would be excluded from the team.
The Red Devils lost 2-0 to Morocco on Sunday, and if they lose or even draw against Croatia, depending on other results, they could very well be eliminated from the World Cup in the group stage.
After that loss, there were rumors of unrest in the team, and Jan Vertonghen poked fun at Kevin De Bruyne and Eden Hazard for criticizing their teammates and saying they were “not the quickest.”
According to the French newspaper L’Equipe, the situation worsened in the locker room afterward, and Romelu Lukaku had to separate the group.
Although they did hold a meeting on Monday to clear the air, Courtois has dismissed rumors that the players got into a fight after losing to Morocco. He also says that if the mole who leaked that report is ever found, they will not be allowed to stay on the team.
The Real Madrid goalkeeper said on Tuesday, during a press conference from Belgium’s training camp, that they had an open discussion that day.
Following the match against Morocco, nothing happened in the locker room. The coach was silent for a while.
Regarding the team, I have no issues. We become more unified and empathetic as a result of this difficult situation.
False information has been written, however. Possibly the biggest issue is coming across press articles or headlines on social media that don’t accurately reflect what we said or that use an out-of-context title.
Information is occasionally released elsewhere by players other than them. There are numerous individuals on the team who [could have leaked it], so we are unsure of who said those things.
The person’s last day on the squad will likely be if we discover who told the press those untrue things.
Face-to-face communication during the meeting was crucial. He doesn’t believe that was lacking in the group and urges you to be honest because we defend one another on the field.
Regarding De Bruyne’s assertion that some of Belgium’s current players are too old, Courtois retorted that Luka Modric’s age in our defense is evidence that there is no correlation between performance and age. Look at Cristiano Ronaldo or Lionel Messi, both are similar.
