The Manchester City winger is due to become a father next month and says he wants to leave the Belgium camp to be at the birth, even if they are still at the World Cup.
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L’Equipe channel presenter France Pierron criticised him, saying a father is “completely useless” at the time of their child’s birth, which she said was a “disgusting moment.”
In a statement, L’Equipe apologised and said Pierron’s comments were “very far removed” from its values. The presenter also apologised, and reports in France said she would not present her show on Monday.
The reaction in football, and elsewhere, was united.
Doku played 86 minutes of Belgium’s opening 1-1 draw with Egypt in Group G but missed their 0-0 draw against Iran because of illness.
His wife Shireen is due to give birth during the second week of July, which could mean her husband missing a quarter-final if Belgium have progressed that far.
“If you ask me what I want, my answer is that nobody wants to miss the birth of their first child,” Doku, 24, told Reuters.
“But I also know that football involves many other considerations. I know the federation supports its players and understands their situations. We’ll see what we can do.”
England striker Ollie Watkins, who has two children, backed Doku.
“I think someone labelled it disgusting and I think for a start that’s not a way to label a birth,” he said. “I’ve seen what my wife had to go through and that was quite smooth sailing but I know family members and friends that haven’t had it that way.
“It only happens once, welcoming your first child to the world, and it is a blessing. There’s a lot of times where you’re away from family and friends during the season, and it’s very difficult, so to miss that would be tough, and I see where he’s coming from.”
The Professional Footballers’ Association said demands placed on players should not be at the expense of “fundamental family moments.”
“While every situation is different, we believe players should be supported in balancing their professional responsibilities with important life events,” a PFA spokesperson said.
“Supporting players as people, not just athletes, is an important part of creating a healthy professional working environment.”
The Fatherhood Institute, which supports men as hands-on fathers and caregivers, also backed Doku.
“It makes me think of gladiators in the Colosseum,” deputy chief executive Jeremy Davies told BBC Sport.
“We want these men to be these heroic figures who exist for our entertainment. They get paid lots of money, but there are some things that are worth a lot more.”
FIFA regulations state maternity leave for female footballers should be “a minimum period of 14 weeks’ paid absence,” eight weeks of which must be after the birth.
There is no specific stipulation on paternity leave, leaving those in the men’s game to juggle their responsibilities.
One club had a car on standby outside the ground for a player whose partner was soon due to give birth, while one manager at a top-flight European club did not travel to a match to be with his wife as she was about to have their second child.
Instead of being in the dugout, he watched the game on TV and relayed instructions to his coaching staff.
“I was on the earpiece to the bench, and 10 minutes into the game she started getting labour pains,” said the manager, who is now working in the Championship.
“We were 2-1 up at half-time but she was getting more into labour. I rang the hospital to say we were going to come in, but had to stop because we got a penalty.
“We scored, I knew we won the game, and we came right in. Our daughter was born two hours later.
“It’s less common with managers because they are typically older but the game doesn’t stop… you need to win the next game.”
Doku would certainly not be the first player to put attending his child’s birth before football.
In 2018, Fabian Delph left England’s World Cup camp in Russia to return to the UK for the birth of his daughter.
David Silva, meanwhile, missed two Manchester City matches following the premature arrival of his son in 2018.
And former Manchester United goalkeeper David de Gea was given extended leave during the Covid pandemic when his partner Edurne gave birth to their daughter in 2021.
Others, though, have not been present.
Just this weekend, Norway defender Leo Ostigard watched his son being born on FaceTime, external while at the World Cup.
Ruben Neves had a similar experience in January 2021 – watching the birth of his third child on his phone from Wolves’ team bus after a 1-0 defeat at Crystal Palace.
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His wife had returned to Portugal, as her doctor was there, but Neves’ plans to join her were scuppered by travel restrictions because of the pandemic.
Source: BBC
