Kevin de Bruyne furiously ordered his Belgium team to leave the pitch after they were booed by their own fans following their goalless draw with Ukraine at Euro 2024.
Belgium booked their place in the last 16 of the competition on Wednesday night but it came after another very underwhelming performance on the final night of Group E action.
All four teams finished on four points with Romania topping the group with Belgium progressing as runners up – feeding them into a knockout tie against France on Monday.
Like England, Belgium have flattered to deceive in Germany, winning just one of their three group games with just two goals scored. Despite reaching the last 16, Belgian fans in attendance were furious with their nation’s latest showing, with boos and whistles raining down at the end of the match.
Belgium players approached their fans to applaud them for their support but as the boos continued, captain de Bruyne intervened and urged his teammates to head for the dressing room.
De Bruyne’s teammate Yannick Carrasco, who came on as a substitute, told the Belgian press the squad decided against going back out onto the pitch to greet supporters, describing the reception as ‘unacceptable’.
‘The qualification has been achieved, we are very proud of that as a group,’ Carrasco said, Het Nieuwsblad report.
‘That’s why we don’t understand this reaction from the fans. That is very disappointing. None of us have yet returned from the dressing room to greet the supporters. We decided that together. We do not find this acceptable. You should not forget where we come from, we now compete fully in every tournament.’
Belgium head coach Domenico Tedesco was also surprised by the reaction, urging supporters to stick with the players.
‘To be honest, I am surprised, I did not expect this,’ Tedesco said. ‘Qualifying was all that mattered. After the loss in the first match, conditions did not become easier, but when we straightened out against Romania, everyone was satisfied again.
‘My players do not understand that we are now being whistled at. It was also a big surprise for me to observe that. We need our supporters, we need each other. Ukraine was a difficult opponent. We did everything we could to score, we have to accept this now.’
Belgium will now shift focus to France, who themselves struggled to impress in the group stages, finishing as runners up behind Austria.
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