Autogoal from Lambert gives Antwerp a fourth success in a row at Eupen

The only team with the maximum points (12), Antwerp logically occupies first place with three points ahead of Anderlecht. Eupen is in 16th position with three points. At 6:30 p.m., OHL receives Club Brugge and at 9:00 p.m., Waregem and Genk will close this fourth day. Among the Pandas, the defeat in Genk left its mark since the exclusion of Stef Peeters and the injury of Abdul Nurudeen forced Bernd Storck to start Gary Magnée and Lennart Moser. On the Antwerp side, Mark van Bommel kept Anthony Valencia on the bench and preferred Koji Miyoshi.

If he had possession of the ball, Antwerp did not create any real chances even if Michael Frey passed close to the goal on a cross at the far post from Michel-Ange Balikwisha (12th). Seeing that the goalkeeper opponent was too advanced, Toby Alderweireld tried his luck from his side. The goalkeeper was beaten but the sending of the Red Devil missed the Eupenois goal. The spectators also didn’t have much to appreciate from the Pandas, who were awarded a penalty for a foul by Richie De Laet on Regan Charles-Cook, but the VAR called out referee Jan Boterberg for him indicate that the push had been committed just outside the penalty area (45th + 2).

Returning from the locker room, Eupen was more lively and Isaac Nuhu, who put De Laet in the wind, shot wide (46th). The Antwerp defense experienced a moment of doubt when, on a cross from Magnée, Aldeweireld emerged to send the ball for a corner (57th). On this one, Jan Kral saw his header hit the crossbar (58th). The time had come for the visiting coach to change the Miyoshi-Frey duo to replace it with that composed of Valencia and Vincent Janssen (62nd). This intervention was beneficial since Antwerp regained color and Moser cleaned up in front of his goal on a ball catapulted by Radja Nainggolan (71st). The German goalkeeper was nevertheless amazed by his defender, Lambert, who deflected a center shot from Valencia (78th) into his goal.