Things are going from bad to worse with Anderlecht in the Jupiler Pro League. The record champion acted without inspiration in a full Kuipje and was sent back to the capital with a deserved 2-1 defeat. In the standings, Anderlecht is already 9 points behind Club Brugge and 11 points behind Antwerp.
Westerlo – Anderlecht in a nutshell:
- Countering Ruffs: Westerlo was continuously the better against an uninspired Anderlecht. In the second half, the home team opted for the counter a bit more and in minute 83 that resulted in a satisfying and deserved 2-1 from Akbunar.
- 2 assists: Is Maxim De Cuyper the best left back of Club Brugge at the moment? The blue-black mercenary dominated on his left side and handed out 2 more assists en passant. A performance to dream of!
- 1 op 12: Dark clouds are gradually gathering above Neerpede. Anderlecht were unable to continue their European triumph against Silkeborg in their own competition and thus remain behind with a painful 1 out of 12. Will it be up or down next weekend against Kortrijk?
Anderlecht can do nothing against enthusiastic Westerlo
After a difficult victory in the Conference League, Felice Mazzu undoubtedly hoped to continue that line in his own competition. Jan Vertonghen, however, was not there with a minor injury.
Anyone who hoped for a dazzling start for a young Anderlecht was soon in for the trouble. It was the home team that won the duels with a knife between their teeth and also opened the score early.
De Cuyper got a boulevard on the left and offered his captain Vetokele the 1-0.
Westerlo also remained boss in the rest of the first half and came close to 2-0 via debutant Nacer Chadli and the fantastic Lyle Foster.
Debutant Nacer Chadli.
Akbunar makes the Kuipje crow with pleasure
After the break Anderlecht again laid all its eggs in the basket of the barely 16-year-old Julien Duranville. The young talent mainly had to provide energy and some offensive creativity.
That too initially seemed to yield little until that other substitute equalized Esposito out of nowhere. The Italian frolicked past Seigers and kicked the equalizer past Bolat from a sharp corner.
Anderlecht wanted to go for it, but once again the Purple & White got the lid on the nose. Westerlo countered: first Nene Dorgeles hit the crossbar and moments later Vaesen and Foster encountered the well-keeping Van Crombrugge.
In the final minutes, however, it was hit. De Cuyper sent Akbunar deep, who just managed to control the ball and pushed the 2-1 into goal.
Anderlecht are left behind with 1 in 12 and are gradually sinking into the standings. Westerlo climbs up to the middle bracket after this satisfying victory.
Mazzu: “The good will was there, but we didn’t do enough in possession”
Afterwards, a clearly disappointed Happy Mazzu give his analysis of the match: “We certainly did not lack enthusiasm”, the Anderlecht coach opened. “We often had the ball, but we didn’t do enough with it and were caught too often on the counterattack.”
“We did try and also equalized and afterwards we also wanted to win the game, but of course there was a lot of space for Westerlo.”
Whether it was a deserved victory, Mazzu said: “The winner is always right. I don’t have to comment on that. It is now up to us to continue working.”
The winning camp was of course Westerlo coach Jonas De Roeck who was still working for Anderlecht in the not too distant past: “We had hoped for a football party like this with a favorable result for us.”
“We have played adult football and also in the difficult moments we have walked the extra meters and we have used our strengths smartly.”
“The transition went perfectly and this is a step forward for this young group.”
Refaelov: “Level in training is higher than during the match”
- Maxim De Cuyper (Westerlo): “With my Club Brugge past, this is the match of the year. This is so good. Our intention was to play compact and we have executed that well.”
“Our countersticks were sharp and made it difficult for Anderlecht. We have many qualities when it comes to football and this is perhaps a reward after those first five games where we deserved more.”
- Lior Refaelov (Anderlecht): “We really didn’t bring enough quality. We also lose the first and the second ball. With intensity you can really make up for a lot and we just miss that at the moment.”
“We are currently with only 10 points. It is difficult to analyze everything now, but everyone has to raise their level. Our level in training is currently much higher than in the match.”
