De Bruyne misses out for Belgium as he requests rest

Injured captain Kevin De Bruyne will miss Belgium’s Nations League matches against Italy and France this month and has also asked for more time off from the national team, coach Domenico Tedesco said on Friday as he announced his squad.

De Bruyne was injured playing for Manchester City against Inter Milan in the Champions League last month and has missed the English champions’ last four fixtures.

City manager Pep Guardiola had already confirmed that De Bruyne was expected to be out until after the international break next week with a muscle injury.

Belgium face Italy in Rome on Thursday and then host France in Brussels on October 14.

At a press conference on Friday, Tedesco said De Bruyne had also asked to miss November’s final two matches in Nations League Group A2 against Italy and Israel as he seeks to manage the number of games he plays.

The 33-year-old De Bruyne had cast doubt over his international future when questioning the fighting mentality and ability of his teammates after a 2-0 defeat by France in Lyon on September 9.

But Tedesco said De Bruyne was committed to continue his international career until the 2026 World Cup.

"I had a long phone conversation with Kevin. He has an injury, but he is very motivated to continue with the Red Devils and to play the World Cup in 2026," Tedesco said.

"He has asked to skip this camp and also November, to be able to take care of his body. The schedule has become even busier due to the Club World Cup. That is why he is not there now and in November. But when it really counts - the World Cup - he will be there.

"Kevin is a big player, but also a big personality. We talked after what happened in the last match. Of course he was emotional, he always wants to win. But he never mentioned names in the media. We just have to deal with it.

"In the media it has become a big item, just because it was Kevin who said it. But in the dressing room it is not a big topic," added the coach.

Belgium’s Romelu Lukaku, who missed last month’s matches while he was finalising a move from Chelsea to Napoli, also asked to be excused from the two games in October.

Tedesco confirmed Lukaku's situation was "similar" to that of De Bruyne but did not rule out a return for November's internationals.

Squad:

Goalkeepers: Koen Casteels (Al Qadsiah), Matz Sels (Nottingham Forest), Maarten Vandevoordt (RB Leipzig)

Defenders: Sebastiaan Bornauw (VfL Wolfsburg), Timothy Castagne (Fulham), Zeno Debast (Sporting Lisbon), Maxim De Cuyper (Club Brugge), Koni De Winter (Genoa), Wout Faes (Leicester City), Matte Smets (Racing Genk), Arthur Theate (Eintracht Frankfurt)

Midfielders: Charles De Ketelaere (Atalanta), Arne Engels (FC Augsburg), Orel Mangala (Olympique Lyonnais), Amadou Onana (Aston Villa), Youri Tielemans (Aston Villa)

Forwards: Johan Bakayoko (PSV Eindhoven), Jeremy Doku (Manchester City), Malick Fofana (Olympique Lyonnais), Dodi Lukebakio (Sevilla), Lois Openda (RB Leipzig) Cyril Ngonge (Napoli), Leandro Trossard (Arsenal).