Belgium coach confirms smoking habits of Chelsea target

It isn’t unheard of for Radja Nainggolan to smoke five or six cigarettes a day from his special hotel room balcony admits Marc Wilmots

Radja Nainggolan is the only member of Belgium’s Euro 2016 squad who smokes, national team coach Marc Wilmots has confirmed in response to rumours.

In his homeland, the Roma star has been hitting the headlines for the wrong reasons as newspapers blast him over his alleged smoking, prompting the tactician to intervene and justify the habit on behalf of his player.

“I confirm, Radja does smoke,” he told Sporza.be.

“It’s a habit that’s easily seen in France or Italy, where many players do smoke.

“I’m flexible, it’s his body and as long as he is performing well then it isn’t a problem for me.”

Wilmots also revealed that due to the habit the midfield man gets special treatment at hotels on national duty, to avoid setting off smoke detectors in rooms.

“I always try to give him a room with a balcony so he doesn’t set off the alarms,” he continued.

“I think he’s the only player in the squad who does smoke.”

Currently, the Chelsea target averages about five or six cigarettes a day his boss also revealed.

“If I had tried to ban him from smoking five or six cigarettes a day, I think he’d wreck his room!” he joked.

“It’s his problem if he plays until he is 30 rather than 35.”