Man City’s De Bruyne concerns as Belgian plays with torn ankle ligament

Martinez coy on future

Once again Belgium failed to take an opportunity to win an international trophy with their golden generation of players.

After a 2-1 defeat at the hands of Italy, head coach Roberto Martinez was asked about his future and whether or not he would continue ahead of the World Cup next year.

The former Everton and Wigan manager remained very closed on the topic and refused to give a definitive answer saying that it was not the right time.

“Well, obviously, this is a moment that is very, very difficult to speak anything else than the defeat and that we are out of the Euros,” he said.

BRUSSELS, BELGIUM – MARCH 25: Head coach / Manager of Belgium, Roberto Martinez looks on during the FIFA 2018 World Cup Group H Qualifier match between Belgium and Greece at Stade Roi Baudouis on March 25, 2017 in Brussels, Belgium. (Photo by Dean Mouhtaropoulos/Getty Images)

“As I say, at the moment, it’s still too raw. And I do not want to say anything that it could be (seen as) emotional.

“At the moment, all I want to do is look back into this tournament and I would say that the players have done nothing wrong. It is the opposite.”

The fact that he did not dismiss the idea of him leaving the national side may come as a concern.

Martinez has been heavily integrated into far more than just coaching responsibilities with the Belgian football federation.

He has seen plenty of development of the younger players at differing youth levels helping to avoid the nation’s team drop off once the likes of Eden Hazard, Kevin De Bruyne and Romelu Lukaku move on in a few years.

De Bruyne plays through torn ankle ligament

One of the biggest questions ahead of the match last night was whether or not Manchester City’s Kevin De Bruyne would be a fixture.

Suffering an ankle injury against Portugal, the worry was that he and Eden Hazard would not be available for the game. Neither trained fully ahead of the match and it was confirmed that the Real Madrid man would be absent from the squad.

Belgium’s Kevin De Bruyne and Belgium’s Eden Hazard celebrate after a second game of the group stage (group B) at UEFA Euro 2020 championships between Belgian national soccer team Red Devils and Denmark, in Copenhagen, Denmark, Thursday 17 June 2021. BELGA PHOTO BRUNO FAHY (Photo by BRUNO FAHY/BELGA MAG/AFP via Getty Images)

However many were surprised to see that De Bruyne did indeed make the team and not only that but started the match and played the full 90 in it’s entirety.

This was surprising already but after he confirmed that he had played with a torn ankle ligament, the surprise grew to concern from a City perspective.

“I thank the medical staff who did an incredible job so that I can play tonight despite a tear in a ligament (of an ankle),” he said.

This will not please Manchester City Boss Pep Guardiola who had already been without his star man for much of the previous campaign due to other injury problems.

De Bruyne could now face a spell on the sidelines recovering and missed the beginning of the Premier League season.

Knowing that he came through the full game is positive in itself. There could have been a risk of a full rupture of the ligament and therefore missing almost off of next season.

Belgium ousted from Euro 2020 as Italy continue historic run

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