Belgium powder keg, Eden Hazard tries to clear the air

“I’m not stupid, it’s bigger than me.”

Paita’s defeat last Sunday against Morocco certainly left its mark on Belgium’s home side. Already fortunate to have racked up a full haul against Canada, in a match in which the North Americans even speculated a penalty early in the match, the ‘Red Devils’ seem distant relatives of the brilliant lineup that has enchanted everyone, albeit without ever winning anything of substance, in recent years.

After the incident involving goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois, who allegedly broke a bench with his fist in the locker room after the match against the North Africans, rumors also surfaced about an alleged altercation between Eden Hazard and defender Jan Vertonghen.

Speaking at a press conference two days before the decisive match against Croatia, the Real Madrid star wanted to clarify the situation once and for all: “Nothing happened in the locker room. The only one who spoke was coach Roberto Martinez. Yesterday we had a confrontation between us, but I did not fight with Jan Vertonghen: I am not stupid, he is bigger than me,” the former enfant prodige of Belgian soccer began.

“Jan asked me for an explanation regarding some of my statements about the slowness of our defenders. I jokingly replied that he was indeed not as fast as he used to be, but that was it. He agreed with me. I also talked to Kevin De Bruyne and he believes in the group, even more than before,” he concluded.