I went along to the Belgian team press conference this morning; as usual, a few players were available: this time, Axel Witsel, Marvin Ogunjimi and Vincent Kompany. I sat in while the local journalists fired questions at Kompany in both French and Dutch. He handled both with aplomb. That’s not that unusal; many Belgians speak… Read More »
Standard Liege defeated Westerlo 2-0 to win the Belgian Cup for the first time in 18 years. Goals from Mangala and Mravac (own goal) ended Westerlo’s dream. Jan Ceulemans’ team played their part in an entertaining match but they probably lacked belief. For Standard, Mangala was solid in defence and his goal put Standard on… Read More »
The shadow of Mehdi Carcela hangs over tonight’s Belgian Cup Final. Standard Liège’s Carcela suffered horrific injuries in last Tuesday’s match with Genk and he’s told his team-mates – from his hospital bed – to win the cup for him. Standard will start favourites against Westerlo but they will not – or should not –… Read More »
Afte a crazy season, Racing Genk got the point they needed to be champions. On the night they got that point thanks to a superb performance by Genk’s young keeper Thibaut Courtois. He was absolutely sensational, making a string of superb saves especially in the second half. Standard deserved more on the night but over… Read More »
As someone once said, it’s been a funny old season. This year’s Jupiler League has had more twists and turns than an Agatha Christie novel, books beloved by many Belgians. When the “classic” season finished, Anderlecht were on top (65 points), one point ahead of Racing Genk and 16 points ahead of Standard Liège. Then… Read More »
Belgian internationals Marvin Ogunjimi, Nacer Chadli and Dries Mertens were sitting around and planning a summer trip to Miami. A youngster overheard them and asked if he could go along. “No way”, they said, “you’re not old enough.” The teenager in question was Romelu Lukaku and he’s 18 today. Lukaku is the biggest thing to… Read More »
The main Jupiler League Playoffs (PO1) are universally disliked by fans, players and clubs. Even the main protagonist – Anderlecht – had to compromise to get the system accepted. It’s ironic, therefore, that the “arrangement” has generated a fair amount of interest at the back end of the season. Although watching the frequent clashes between… Read More »
Anderlecht are deep in crisis and there is much chatter about Ariel Jacobs being replaced at the end of the season. But why blame the coach? He can only play with the cards that he’s been dealt; and Jacobs has been dealt some duds. Anderlecht won the championship in 2009-10 with a side that… Read More »
Before the match, Standard coach Dominique D’Onofrio said he was giving more priority to the cup than the league. Not many believed him and if they did, they felt he would perhaps leave Steven Defour on the bench. For once, DD surprised everyone and sent out a side with just four first-team regulars. With Defour,… Read More »
After last night’s 1-1 draw between Ghent and Club Brugge, the spotlight today turns on Anderlecht as they welcome their eternal rivals, Standard Liege in the so-called ‘Clasico’. Liege captain Steven Defour recently said he was opposed to the current system of playoffs, as a match like Anderlecht-Standard was great twice per season, but that… Read More »