L’Equipe apologises to Belgian footballer Jérémy Doku for presenter’s comments

The French media outlet L’Équipe has apologised to the Belgian footballer Jérémy Doku after he was criticised by one of its pundits for saying he would duck out of the World Cup to be present at the birth of his first child. News of the apology came as the Belgian football federation said Doku had made it back to London in time to be with his wife Shireen, who gave birth to a boy called Praise ⁠on Monday. “Jeremy received news before yesterday’s match that the birth was imminent,” the team ⁠doctor, Brahim Hacene, said in a statement. “Everything went perfectly, and the mother, father, and baby are all doing wonderfully. Jérémy will rejoin the squad [on Tuesday] evening in Seattle.” Last week Doku had told reporters that Shireen was due to give birth in the second week of July and, should Belgium still be in the tournament by then, he was hoping to go home for the birth . “It depends on when it happens, but it’s my first child, so I ‌would ⁠definitely want to be there,” said Doku, Belgium’s 24-year-old winger, who plays for Manchester City. “If you ask me what I want, my answer is that nobody wants to miss the birth of their first child … I know the federation supports its players and understands their situations. We’ll see what we can do.” Jérémy Doku in action during Belgium’s opening 1-1 draw with Egypt at the World Cup. …