De Bruyne and Moreira among five Serie A men in Belgium's November squad
Mark van Bommel has called up Kevin De Bruyne, Diego Moreira and three other Serie A-based players for Belgium's Nations League double-header against Turkiye and Italy.
Mark van Bommel has named Napoli's Kevin De Bruyne and AC Milan's Diego Moreira in his Belgium squad for this month's Nations League fixtures, as reported by Football Italia.
Belgium travel to Turkiye on Thursday, November 12, before hosting Italy in Brussels three days later on Sunday, November 15. Four points separate the top three sides in the group: France lead with 10 points from four matches, Italy are second on seven, and Belgium sit third on six. Turkiye have yet to pick up a point.
Why De Bruyne's role matters more than his form
De Bruyne arrives in poor club form. Napoli have lost seven of their first 14 competitive matches this season, including two defeats in the last week alone, according to Football Italia. For a player whose value to a team is built on dictating tempo from central midfield - picking the moment to accelerate play with a line-breaking pass rather than simply retaining possession - a run of defeats at club level tends to show up less in raw output than in a side's overall control of games. Belgium's challenge is isolating that creative function from Napoli's broader struggles, since De Bruyne's influence depends on the structure around him allowing him time on the ball in the half-spaces rather than forcing him into deeper, more reactive positions.
Van Bommel's decision to keep faith with him regardless suggests the coaching staff view the Napoli slump as a club-context issue rather than a personal dip, a distinction that matters for a player whose international role has long been built around directing attacking transitions rather than pressing duties.
Moreira's derby weekend and a muted European night
Moreira's selection follows a notably stronger week than De Bruyne's. He scored and set up two further goals in Milan's 3-1 derby win over Inter, reigning Serie A champions, last weekend, Football Italia reported. That kind of direct goal involvement from a wide attacking role - scoring and creating in the same match - points to a player currently comfortable both finishing moves and initiating them, which is exactly the combination an international coach wants to see before a short, condensed set of fixtures.
The picture was less clear-cut in Milan's next outing. They lost 2-0 at home to Ferencvaros in the Europa League, though Moreira was not brought on until half-time, limiting how much can be read into that result as a form indicator. His inclusion in the Belgium squad rests on the derby performance rather than the European night that followed it.
The supporting cast and what the standings demand
Three further Serie A players complete the Italy-based contingent. Charles De Ketelaere, in form for Atalanta, is aiming to reach double figures for international goals during this break, while Parma's Mandela Keita and Bologna defender Arthur Theate also travel with the squad, according to Football Italia. Their presence underlines how much of Belgium's current pool is drawn from Serie A clubs at a moment when the league's financial and tactical reputation across Europe remains strong.
The group table gives this pair of fixtures real stakes beyond friendly-style squad building. A away trip to bottom-placed Turkiye looks, on paper, the more straightforward of the two, but Nations League group points accumulate toward final standings that determine promotion and relegation between divisions, so there is little margin for treating it as a formality. Hosting Italy three days later, with the two sides separated by a single point, is the fixture most likely to shape where Belgium finish in the group.
Van Bommel's squad otherwise draws heavily from England's top flight and Belgian football itself, with goalkeepers Senne Lammens, Maarten Vandevoort and Mike Penders among those named alongside Club Brugge's contingent of Kyriani Sabbe, Brandon Mechele, Joaquin Seys and Hans Vanaken. Romelu Lukaku, now at Fenerbahce, and Jeremy Doku of Manchester City complete a forward line that gives Belgium attacking options across several different systems.
Belgium's results against Turkiye and Italy will determine whether they can close the gap on second-placed Italy or fall further back in a group France currently dominate. The Brussels fixture against Italy, given the single point between the sides, carries the greater weight of the two.