Kevin De Bruyne’s request to miss Belgium’s matches for the rest of the year does not mean he has retired from international football, according to Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola.
Red Devils head coach Domenico Tedesco said talisman De Bruyne had made the decision “to be able to take care of his body”.
“He did not say to me that he will retire for Belgium,” said Guardiola, adding that De Bruyne is out of City’s home game against Fulham on Saturday (3pm BST) with a thigh injury that has kept him out of their last three games.
“He’s injured, so he’s not available. How can he go when he hasn’t played one game? I never understood that. He cannot play for us, he cannot play for Belgium.”
PEP 💬 (On whether Erling Haaland will be fit for tomorrow) Yes. Except Nathan, Kevin, Rodri and Oscar, the rest are ok. pic.twitter.com/Y33GLE27IB
— Manchester City (@ManCity) October 4, 2024
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De Bruyne Belgium future
An international debutant in 2010, De Bruyne was clearly unhappy after Belgium’s 2-0 Nations League defeat in France in September, losing to the same opponents who knocked them out at the round of 16 stage of an underwhelming Euro 2024 campaign.
Reports in Belgium claimed that De Bruyne had told Belgium sporting director Frank Vercauteren on the pitch that he “will stop” – taken by some to mean international retirement.
De Bruyne, who sat out five months of last season because of hamstring surgery, will miss his latest game against opponents who are on a 16-match losing run in the fixture.
PEP 💬 Hopefully after the international break, he [Kevin De Bruyne] will be back. pic.twitter.com/ceo4S79aEl
— Manchester City (@ManCity) September 30, 2024
Man City vs Fulham
“I’m not going to talk about this subject,” Guardiola replied when he was asked about the Cottagers’ wretched record against City.
“I don’t like this question. After one minute [at home to] Brentford [on September 14], we were 1-0 down. The best way is to not ask me this question, please.”
City dropped points for the second consecutive game when they visited Newcastle on September 28 – their first full league match since hugely influential midfielder Rodri suffered a knee injury that is likely to end the Spain international’s season.
The reigning top-flight champions won 4-0 at Slovan Bratislava in the Champions League on Tuesday but are a point behind Liverpool after six games of the Premier League season.
Fulham arrive on a two-match winning run and are unbeaten since their 1-0 opening defeat at Manchester United, collecting 11 points to move sixth in the table.
