“They don’t care about the players they just care about their pockets.”
Belgium goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois has launched a scathing attack on UEFA, claiming that making money is more important to them than player welfare.
The 29-year-old was speaking to Sky Sports after his country’s 2-1 defeat to Italy in the Nations League third-place play-off against Italy in a game that Courtois described as “pointless” in the build-up.
After both nations played midweek, both bosses made a host of changes, with Belgium resting the likes of Romelu Lukaku and Eden Hazard, and Courtois gave a damning assessment of UEFA, saying that their only interest is money.
He said: “This game is just a money game and we have to be honest about it. We just play it because for UEFA it’s extra money.
“Look at how much both teams changed [line-ups]. If both teams would have been in the final there would have been other players in the final playing. This just shows that we play too many games.”
🗣️ "They don't care about the players they just care about their pockets."
Thibaut Courtois accused UEFA and FIFA of prioritising money over player welfare after Belgium were beaten 2-1 by Italy in the Nations League third-place play-off. pic.twitter.com/0RbBu0Ux6h
— Sky Sports News (@SkySportsNews) October 11, 2021
The Real Madrid shot-stopper also went on to criticise the footballing calendar, indicating that biennial international tournaments would not benefit the players and that injuries would become more common if plans did go ahead.
“It’s a bad thing that players are not spoken about. And now you hear about a European Championship and a World Cup every year, when will we get a rest? Never.”
“We are not robots! It’s just more and more games and less rest for us and nobody cares about us.
“Next year we have a World Cup in November, we have to play until the latter stages of June again. We will get injured! Nobody cares about the players anymore.”
“Three weeks of holiday is not enough for players to be able to continue for 12 months at the highest level,” he added. “If we never say anything it [will be] always the same.”
Related links:
- France score dramatic late winner against Belgium to secure place in Nations League final
- Gianluigi Donnarumma booed by own fans during Italy’s Nations League semi-final
- Florentino Perez hints Kylian Mbappe could sign for Real Madrid in January
