England striker Ollie Watkins has defended Jérémy Doku over his decision to be present at the birth of his first child and leave Belgium's World Cup base.
Doku's wife Shireen is due to give birth to the couple's first son in early July, when Belgium could possibly play in the knockout stages of the World Cup.
His decision to leave the United States, Mexico and Canada has been greeted with both support and criticism from pundits around the world.
L'Equipe presenter France Pierron described childbirth as a "disgusting moment, excuse me, where the dad is useless," comments which L'Equipe and Pierron herself have subsequently apologised for.
Doku himself said that "no one wants to miss a birth," to which Pierron said: "There are hundreds of footballers who would kill to be in your place."
Watkins, who has two children with wife Ellie Alderson, staunchly defended Doku and hit back at the comments made by Pierron, that have gone viral.
In a news conference ahead of England's second match of the World Cup against Ghana on Tuesday night, Watkins said: "Someone labelled it disgusting and I think for a start that's not a way to label a birth.
"He said it only happens once, your first child. Welcoming them to the world is a blessing -- you don't get that opportunity [a lot].
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"There's a lot of times where you're away from family and friends during the season and it's [a] very difficult period.
"So to miss that would be tough, and I see where he's coming from, I think he has all [the] right to go back and be there.
"We're very privileged men at the end of the day and I'm sure he will have a lot of support to be able to get back and get there as quickly as possible, make sure he's there to support her and then fly back out.
"I don't think it's anyone else's business what he gets up to after training and if he goes back and does that, I think that's fair enough."
Belgium have so far flattered to deceive at this tournament, drawing both of their opening matches against Egypt and Iran.
They are now in a position where they must beat New Zealand in their third and final group match to guarantee their qualification for the knockout stages, having failed to advance beyond the group phase four years ago.
Should Belgium top their group, they would play on July 1 against a third-placed team from Group A, E, H, I or J in the round of 32.
They would then play in the round of 16 should they win that on July 7, which could see them face the United States.