Vertonghen mocks teammate de Bruyne after Belgium's defeat to Morocco saying the attackers are 'too old'

Belgium defender Jan Vertonghen appears to have sent a subtle dig in the direction of international team-mate Kevin De Bruyne after his questionable comments before their 2-0 defeat by Morocco.

The chance of Belgium's status in the last 16 of the World Cup now hinges on their upcoming must-win clash against Croatia, following a dismal display that saw them be second-best to their Group F opponents Morocco for near enough the entire tie. Roberto Martinez's men now sit third in their group, a point behind both Croatia and their opponents on Sunday afternoon.

After the clash, central defender Vertonghen told the media: "I guess we attack badly because we are also too old up front." The comments make for interesting reading, but it seems as if they are a reference to remarks made by De Bruyne before their second group stage clash.

The Manchester City midfielder was asked whether this 'Golden Generation' of Belgian talent could lift the World Cup this time around, to which he remarkably responded: "No chance, we're too old." 

"I think our chance was 2018. We have a good team, but it is ageing. We lost some key players. We have some good new players coming, but they are not at the level other players were in 2018. I see us more as outsiders."

His manager was forced to comment on De Bruyne's assessment after the game, with Martinez adding: "This is the first time I've heard those comments from Kevin."

"At a World Cup, the players have to speak to the media every day, 90% of it will be positive but there are always one or two lines that don't fit into the context."

"A player is allowed to air their view. We've been together for six years now and comments won't help us to win. Maybe it was a double-bluff. It's what happens behind the scenes that matters."

It wasn't just Vertonghen and Martinez who may not have appreciated De Bruyne's honesty, with ex-City star Pablo Zabaleta blasting the midfielder and bemoaning the mentality of the Belgium national side as a collective.

"My big concern about Belgium is the things players saying we're not the team we used to be. That's not the mentality you bring into the World Cup," he explained. "They still have enough good players to win and beat anybody. If I'm one of the senior players here I'm fuming."

"Maybe they're playing some mind games. They have two or three players who aren't young but some of the rest of the team."

"Compared to Croatia/Uruguay I don't hear them complaining about the ageing squad. It's not the quality. They still have good enough players but if you complain about all those things it's going to be very difficult. It's not the right mentality."

Hopes were high for this Belgian squad going into the tournament considering the Red Devils were armed with some of the finest talent European football has to offer.

De Bruyne is widely regarded as Belgium's danger man, but Real Madrid's Eden Hazard is no slouch and Inter Milan loanee Romelu Lukaku knows where the net is despite his Chelsea misery.

Anything other than a Belgium win over Croatia would spell the end of their World Cup hopes.