In Dusseldorf, Germany, Belgium was defeated by France 1-0 on Monday and said goodbye to the European Championship in the round of 16. With many quality names in recent years, the famous “Belgian generation” has always carried high expectations in the biggest tournaments between national teams, but just like in this Euro, Belgium has never achieved great results. Kevin De Bruyne, perhaps the last great name of this generation, was asked about the Belgian golden harvest that did not work out. The Manchester City midfielder did not like the question and even insulted the journalist.
Our #EURO2024 ends here. 😤 #FRABEL #WirSchaffenDas pic.twitter.com/OyIMr1ITiN
— Belgian Red Devils (@BelRedDevils) July 1, 2024
The interviewer asked De Bruyne why the “Belgian generation” had failed and never won a title. The midfielder responded harshly and ended the post-match press conference by calling the questioner “stupid.”
“Do we have a golden generation? So does that mean that France, England, Spain and Germany don’t have a golden generation?… Stupid,” said the midfielder.
Belgium has had some big names in its squad since 2014. Hazard, now retired, was the first great player to stand out in the national team. De Bruyne, Lukaku, Courtois and Vertonghen are some other examples.
In the 2014 World Cup, the Belgians were eliminated in the quarterfinals by Lionel Messi’s Argentina, who would go on to be runners-up in that World Cup. In 2018, Belgium achieved the best result with its “golden generation”: eliminating Brazil in the quarterfinals, the Belgians finished in 3rd place in that World Cup. In 2022, the team’s decline began and Belgium was eliminated in the group stage.
When it comes to the European Championship, the record is also not very good. In 2016, Belgium was eliminated in the quarter-finals, losing to Wales 3-1. In 2021, they fell in the same phase, losing to Italy 2-1.
Source: Gazetaesportiva
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