Aston Villa star Youri Tielemans has been warned to step up his consideration for Belgium after a disappointing display in the 5-2 defeat to the United States.
criticism comes Importance of Limburg and analyst Justin OdgersWho did not hold back in assessing this week's moment.
Tielemans was introduced from the bench against the United States, but his cameo was unimpressive.
With Belgium already suffering a chaotic, goal-heavy defeat, Sene Lammens played the ball into Tielemans in the penalty area. The Aston Villa midfielder hesitated for a second, which was long enough for the United States to take the lead and make the score 2–5.
"Purely due to Youri Tielemans' negligence"
It was an uncharacteristic miss to say the least for a 28-year-old and experienced player.
For Odgers, this was a worrying sign ahead of the World Cup. She didn't hold back when assessing that moment in Het Belang van Limburg.
"The gift of the goal we conceded against Team USA is the last thing we need at the World Cup," He said.
“That second goal that was conceded was entirely down to Youri Tielemans' carelessness. We should have expected a bit more focus from someone with his track record.
"Even if it was 'only' a friendly. Things like this need to go away so we can go into the World Cup with peace of mind."
Agent's comments backfired
What makes it worse for Youri Tielemans is that the mistake comes after Comments from his agent last week.
Questions were raised about the Aston Villa star's participation this break as he has not returned from a long-term injury layoff.
His agent Bob Claes answered these questions and insisted that Tielemans is determined to be part of the group because of the standards he sets as captain.
"Yuri has set the bar high," He said.
"In terms of standards and values. In terms of work ethic. And in terms of intelligence. A dream to work with. Yuri seeks continuous improvement but is also open to dialogue."
A warning before the World Cup
Those comments seem a bit unfortunate now. Youri Tielemans' quality is undeniable, but with competition for midfield places intensifying, mistakes like this are magnified.
Belgium will not panic yet. But they will be expecting more from their captain and Premier League star ahead of the World Cup this summer.
If he's setting the tone, as his agent has said, it's not what he was aiming for, that's for sure.
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