“Just glorified friendlies” – Manchester City superstar Kevin De Bruyne labels UEFA Nations League as ‘not important’ in dig over player welfare

Manchester City midfielder Kevin De Bruyne has slammed the UEFA Nations League, ahead of Belgium's upcoming fixtures in the competition.

Following an already grueling season, Roberto Martinez's side will play four games in 11 days starting on Friday, 3 June. They will take on the Netherlands, Wales and Poland twice.

De Bruyne won the Premier League Player of the Season award as Manchester City won their fourth title in five years. The 30-year-old scored 19 times and provided 14 assists in 49 appearances in all competitions in a season that was affected by injuries and the COVID-19 virus.

The Belgian international couldn't hide his frustration at having to play four more games at the end of the grueling campaign. He stated via The Manchester Evening News:

"For me, the Nations League is not important. We have to play these games, but it feels like a campaign of friendly games. Just glorified friendlies after a long and tough season. I'm not looking forward to it."

"In 12 months, we have three weeks of holiday. The people from the outside do not understand how a player feels after a season. But they don’t have to because it won’t change anything. It doesn’t even matter to mention it, nothing will change anyway."

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Manchester City star Kevin De Bruyne picks fantasy five-a-side Premier League team

De Bruyne has undoubtedly been one of the best midfielders in English football since his move from Wolfsburg in 2015.

When the playmaker was asked on by Copa 90's TikTok channel whom he would pick if he was restricted to just one player per side in his All-Star Premier League five-a-side team. De Bruyne chose a player from each of the top four sides in the Premier League, as well as one unexpected choice from a mid-table side. The City star replied (as per The Chelsea Chronicle):

“I will take (Liverpool’s Virgil) van Djik, (N'Golo) Kante...”

The two-time PFA Player of the Year added:

“I’ll take [Tottenham Hotspur’s Harry] Kane, I’ll put myself in it for [Manchester] City purposes.”

De Bruyne then named Eduoard Mendy as his goalkeeper before realizing he had already named Kante as his Chelsea player. The midfield maestro instead decided to choose Wolves shot-stopper Jose Sa, with the Portugal international enjoying an incredibly successful debut campaign at Molineux.