DOHA: Belgium’s squad held a meeting where players aired their “honest” views about how the team can salvage their World Cup campaign, goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois said Tuesday.
Belgium arrived in Qatar as the No. 2-ranked team and one of the tournament favorites, but were unconvincing in a 1-0 win over Canada before losing to Morocco 2-0 on Sunday.
The team need to beat Croatia in their final group game on Thursday to guarantee advancing to the last 16.
Courtois and Belgium captain Eden Hazard played down reports of infighting in the squad that surfaced after the Morocco game.
Courtois did say, however, he and his teammates had a frank exchange of views at their training base in Al Rayyan on Monday.
“I did not feel like there were issues, but it is always good to have a meeting all together so everybody can share their thoughts,” the Real Madrid goalkeeper said Tuesday.
“This way, everything is sorted and I think that the best thing we can do is to be honest, because on the pitch we have to fight for each other. So being honest is the most important thing.”
There has been plenty of focus on a seemingly off-the-cuff comment by Kevin De Bruyne, the star of the team, in a pre-tournament interview with British newspaper The Guardian.
In it, De Bruyne was asked if Belgium can win the World Cup and he was quoted as saying: “No chance, we’re too old.” Against Canada, Belgium had six players in their 30s in the starting lineup, with four of them having accrued more than 100 international appearances.
One of them is Jan Vertonghen, who appeared to make a reference to De Bruyne’s remark when speaking after the loss to Morocco.
“Where did it go wrong?” Vertonghen said. “We probably also attack badly because we are too old, that must be it now, surely?”
Hazard said he had spoken to De Bruyne and that his long-time teammate “believes in us more than ever.”
“Sometimes in an interview, you say funny things you don’t really mean,” Hazard said. “I think he just wanted to say that we are older than four years ago. And he is right, we are older.
“Everybody is older. The defenders. Us, the midfielders. Thibaut is older than four years ago, it is what it is. I think Kevin is the first to have confidence in this group, otherwise he would not be here.”
Hazard urged his team to play with “no fear” against Croatia, the 2018 World Cup runner-up.
“In two days, it could be our last game, so we have to play with desire to win,” he said. “If we go together on the pitch, 11 players, we can beat Croatia. I know it is going to be difficult, because every game in this World Cup is difficult, but we can do it. With the team we have, we can do it.”
Belgium hold players’ meeting after poor start to World Cup
https://arab.news/nejkw
Belgium hold players’ meeting after poor start to World Cup
- Belgium arrived in Qatar as the No. 2-ranked team and one of the tournament favorites
- The team need to beat Croatia in their final group game on Thursday to guarantee advancing to the last 16
Top seed Felix Auger-Aliassime overcomes struggles to progress in Dubai
- The Canadian, ranked No. 8 in the world, needed 6 match points to secure victory over China’s Zhizhen Zhang
- Winning return for British No. 1 Jack Draper following 8 months out with a recurring arm injury
DUBAI: Felix Auger-Aliassime has returned to the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships with the aim to improve on last season’s runner-up showing.
The Canadian, ranked No. 8 in the world and the No. 1 seed in Dubai, needed six match-points to secure victory over China’s Zhizhen Zhang, and progresses to Wednesday’s round of 16 to face Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard.
Auger-Aliassime opened his campaign with a 6-3, 7-6(4) win. A year ago, the 25-year-old reached the championship match but was denied the trophy by a red-hot Stefanos Tsitsipas.
This time around, he arrives as one of the leading contenders for the title, with his face prominently positioned around the host venue’s expanded Tennis Village, a fact he is happy to embrace.
“It’s the right timing,” he said post-match.
“It’s not like it’s too soon for me. I’ve been on this Tour for quite some years now and been in this position as a teenager in Junior Grand Slams too, so I like to be in this position where there is pressure on me and to see if I deliver.
“I am kind of testing my growth, self-belief, and composure, and I want to be in this position in even bigger tournaments one day.”
Against Zhang, he saved four break points, but also failed to convert two match points on return at 5-4 and three more at 6-5 before holding his nerve in the tiebreak to avoid a third set.
“I stopped counting at some point; it was getting too frustrating,” he said with his charismatic smile.
“It’s weird because having match points is the position you want to be in as a player, yet your mind plays a trick on you because how much further I am from losing, he’s the one who should be tight, but the players (leading) tend to actually get tight.
“But I kept telling myself if there’s a third set, I’ll be there.”
Next up is Mpetshi Perricard after the Frenchman saw off Tunisian wildcard Moez Echargui, the Arab world’s top-ranked player at No. 141. Echargui pushed himself and his opponent to the limit, with all three sets going to tiebreaks.
Mpetshi Perricard finally edged through 7-6 (3), 6-7 (3), 7-6 (4). Such was the intensity, Mpetshi Perricard required medical timeouts for ankle pain and suggested he was “not very confident” he would recover fully in time for his next match.
For 33-year-old Echargui, in contrast, February is proving positive. Having made his ATP 500 debut last week in Doha, he said this month marks an important new chapter in his career.
“Going on center court and playing against top players, it is where we want to be, playing in these big tournaments, in front of these big crowds,” said Echargui, whose next stop is Indian Wells next week.
“Despite the result, I’m feeling really positive about it. I knew the match would be a hard one, so I just tried to stay focused all the way through. I’m proud to represent my country and to represent all the Arab world, especially here in Dubai.”
In the final match on center court, British No. 1 Jack Draper eased back into life on Tour following eight months out with a recurring arm injury. The No. 4 seed, demonstrating a new serve technique, hit 13 aces as he beat French qualifier Quentin Halys 7-6 (8), 6-3 to progress.
“Today was a little bit nervy,” said Draper, who was world No. 4 last June before a series of injuries struck.
“It wasn’t my cleanest performance, but after all this time, I’m really proud of myself. The way I came out and competed; it wasn’t easy but from here on, hopefully I can go from strength to strength.
“It was really great to get back competing and in front of people, I’ve been practicing for eight months now in front of only my granddad, so to be out here, to play in front of you guys and be back on tour it is honestly such a privilege for me.”
