Belgium goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois has described his side’s performance at the World Cup as “embarrassing” and rubbished the claim the players are a “golden generation”.
Roberto Martinez’s side were knocked out of the tournament in the group stages after a lacklustre performance in Group F. Belgium started with a narrow 1-0 win over Canada, before a shock 2-0 loss to Morocco and 0-0 draw with Croatia sent them crashing out.
Belgium finished third at the 2018 World Cup in Russia and have consistently been near the top of the FIFA rankings. Players like Romelu Lukaku, Kevin De Bruyne and Eden Hazard have led to the side being branded a “golden generation”, but Real Madrid goalkeeper Courtois rejects that tag.
"In this World Cup and in the Euros we were not ourselves, it is a bit embarrassing. We will see what will happen, who will stay, who will not stay,” he told AS. "Football, it's going fast. In March there are already qualifying matches for the Euros.
"It's hard to call yourself a 'Golden Generation' when you don't win anything. We are not a golden generation, we are a generation with a lot of talent and great players from all over Europe. We showed in Russia 2018 that we were a Belgium that played good football."
Belgium’s World Cup campaign was undermined by persistent reports of division among the squad. Martinez’s decision to stick by captain Hazard, despite his poor performances, reportedly prompted mutiny in the ranks.
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De Bruyne fell out with several senior players, including defender Jan Vertonghen, after giving an interview before the tournament in which he dismissed Belgium’s chances of winning the tournament.
"No chance, we’re too old,” the Manchester City midfielder said. "I think our chance was 2018. We have a good team, but it is ageing. We lost some key players. We have some good new players coming, but they are not at the level other players were in 2018. I see us more as outsiders."
With Martinez stepping down as manager and many players in their 30s, Belgium are likely to undergo a period of change. "That was my last game", Martinez said after the Croatia draw at the Ahmad bin Ali Stadium. "It's emotional as you can imagine."
But Courtois says he is planning to stick around for the 2026 World Cup. "Yes, that is my goal. We still have a good generation and there are players who will join,” he said. "I hope that when I stop playing with the Red Devils it will be at a good time, not now."
