“Everyone needs to do better – the coach, me, everyone,” warns Manchester City winger
Jeremy Doku expressed frustration with Belgium’s recent form following their draw in Kazakhstan, warning that the Red Devils have “dropped too many points” during their World Cup qualification run.
The Manchester City winger insisted that, despite the favourable matchup against Liechtenstein on Tuesday, Belgium must sharpen up if they are to secure their spot in next year’s tournament.
After being held to a 1-1 draw by Kazakhstan on Friday, Belgium enter their final qualifier needing a win or a draw to guarantee progression to the 2026 World Cup. If they were to lose, either of Wales or North Macedonia could claim the top spot, but this would be a tall order, with Liechtenstein having lost all of their seven qualifying games played so far.
Nevertheless, Doku is uncomfortable with his side’s below-par performances.
“We’ve already dropped too many points because we weren’t good enough in a large number of matches,” said the Belgian. “Our campaign hasn’t gone well, no. Everyone needs to do better. The coach, me, everyone.”
Kazakhstan lost to both North Macedonia and Wales, Belgium’s other competitors for top spot, so the draw in Astana was a surprise.
“Maybe we didn’t analyse our opponent enough,” said Doku. “It doesn’t matter. We just have to finish our chances and then we’ll be done with the permutations.”
The winger also rejected the idea that missing stars such as Kevin De Bruyne, Thibaut Courtois, and Romelu Lukaku are a valid excuse for their underwhelming performances.
“If we need Kevin, Romelu, Thibaut to win against Kazakhstan, then we can’t do anything at the World Cup,” said Doku. “I think if we want to be significant at the World Cup, we have to be able to win games like this.”
