Rudi García warns Van Bommel about one man in Belgium: 'If I were still national coach, then...'

Rudi Garcia has reflected on the World Cup with Belgium in the United States, Mexico and Canada in an interview with Le Soir. The now sacked coach did not have a good word to say about the team's medical staff.

Belgium opened their World Cup with draws against Egypt (0-0) and Iran (1-1). In the final group match, they beat New Zealand 5-1.

That was still enough for Belgium to finish as group winners. In the round of 32, they faced Senegal and beat them 3-2 after extra time. In the round of 16, the Belgians then beat the United States 4-1.

Garcia and the country ultimately met their Waterloo in the quarter-finals. The eventual world champions Spain were too strong and won 2-1. After the World Cup, Garcia was sacked and replaced by Mark van Bommel.

"It was a wonderful adventure. A great success. It remains a major achievement that we reached the quarter-finals. We were the only team to score against Spain," the Frenchman begins.

He was not happy with everyone in the Belgium camp, though. The medical staff in particular failed to impress him. "We put the World Cup at risk because injuries were not dealt with properly."

What Garcia is referring to here is the situation surrounding Jérémy Doku. The forward was struggling with a respiratory infection, which meant he had to go to the emergency department. Garcia had wanted a medical examination days earlier, but the doctor advised against it and gave him antibiotics that did not help.

"Six days later he was in the emergency department. We played an entire World Cup without him... If I had remained national team coach, then the medical staff would have had to improve."