‘It’s hard to call yourself a ‘Golden Generation’ when you don’t win anything’: Thibaut Courtois admits that Belgium’s early exit from the World Cup is ‘a bit embarrassing’
Belgium goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois has admitted that it is difficult to refer to his team as a ‘golden generation’ when they haven’t won anything.
Despite having high-profile players in their team including Kevin de Bruyne, Romelu Lukaku and Eden Hazard, Belgium were knocked out in the group stages of the World Cup in Qatar.
Belgium finished third at the last World Cup in 2018 but they haven’t managed to win any silverware with this talented group of players.
Thibaut Courtois says his Belgium team do not deserve to be called a ‘golden generation’
Courtois described Belgium’s exit as ‘a bit embarrassing’ and insisted that his team are not a ‘golden generation’.
As reported by AS, Courtois said: ‘In this World Cup and in the Euro we were not ourselves, it is a bit embarrassing. We will see what will happen, who will stay, who will not stay. Football It’s going fast. In March there are already qualifying matches for the Euros’.
‘It’s hard to call yourself a ‘Golden Generation’ when you don’t win anything. We are not a golden generation, we are a generation with a lot of talent and great players from all over Europe. We showed in Russia 2018 that we were a Belgium that played good football.’
Belgium suffered further frustration in Qatar and manager Roberto Martinez has departed
Courtois confirmed that he hopes to play for Belgium at the 2026 World Cup, which will take place in Canada, Mexico, and the United States when he will be 34 years old.
He said: ‘Yes, that is my goal. We still have a good generation and there are players who will join. I hope that when I stop playing with the Red Devils it will be at a good time, not now.’
As Courtois alludes to, the composition of the Belgium squad could change drastically. Manager Roberto Martinez has already departed and Eden Hazard is considering international retirement.
Courtois hopes that he will still be part of the Belgium squad at the 2026 World Cup
Courtois revealed that following Belgium’s exit from the tournament he will now support Spain and he wished good luck to his Real Madrid team-mates who are still competing in Qatar.
He said: ‘Now I will support Spain, and I also wish success to my remaining clubmates.’
Belgium’s World Cup campaign started with a 1-0 win against Canada but they were beaten 2-0 by Morocco and then drew 0-0 with Croatia.
Courtois, who has 100 caps, has been part of the Belgium squad at five major tournaments.
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