Wout Faes and Randal Kolo Muani battle for the ball. (Photo by Carl Recine/Getty Images)
Leicester City defender Wout Faes has come under fire for his performance in Belgium’s 2-1 defeat to France in the Uefa Nations League.
As is usually the case nowadays, Faes played the full 90 minutes as the Red Devils were beaten in Brussels on Monday.
The defeat leaves Belgium third in Group A2, five points adrift of France and six below leaders Italy, with their hopes of reaching the Finals now extremely faint. Instead, Belgium are more likely to play in a relegation playoff match with a team placed second in Group B.
Faes completed 37 of his 41 attempted passes on the night, including four of his five attempted long balls.
The 26-year-old posted some strong defensive numbers, too, making six clearances, three recoveries and one block, while winning three of his five aerial duels.
However, Faes suffered a disastrous moment in the 34th minute when he fell inside his own box and halted Bradley Barcola’s jinking run with his arm, giving away a penalty which was dispatched by Randal Kolo Muani.
Faes was also dribbled past three times on the night and lost all four of his contested ground duels.
Wout Faes fails to impress in Belgium defeat
After such a glaring error, it likely won’t come as a surprise to see Faes ripped apart by Belgian media, especially after a subpar performance in the 2-2 draw with Italy last week as well.
“Already the author of a risky recovery at the start of the match, he ended up cracking in front of Barcola and committing a stupid penalty,” Walfoot wrote of Faes (translated by Leicester City News) as they awarded him a 4/10 rating. “Too bad because when he recovered, he was worthy of an Alderweireld on a good day.”
Voetbal Primeur gave him a slightly more favourable 5/10, adding: “Initially played a fairly good game, but after just over half an hour of play he committed an incomprehensible penalty foul in the sixteen. This earned France a penalty and a lead, which the visitors did not relinquish. Mistakes that Faes makes more often and are also a big stain on his game.”
Faes has already been credited with an error leading to a shot for Leicester in the Premier League this season and is becoming known as a talented defender with a bad habit of switching off.
Despite this, the Belgian remains linked to Newcastle United, who are desperately searching for a new centre-back after their failed summer push for Crystal Palace’s Marc Guehi.
