Club expansion gets a new boost: ‘sober football connoisseur’ Tom Caluwé strengthens blue-black as sports manager | Belgian Football

On Saturday, Club beat KV Mechelen 3-0 (read more below the video):

They can’t stop, they won’t stop. The expansion of Club Brugge is again boosted, this time with the input of sports manager Tom Caluwé. In the football world – and in Mechelen in particular – praised for his insight and football content qualities. The ex-player of Malinwa, FC Utrecht and Willem II will be in charge of the sporting compartment of the national champion – he is assisted in this by Sports coordinator Maarten Dedobbeleer. Together they take over some of the responsibilities from general manager Vincent Mannaert, who remains ultimately responsible. Earlier this year, Mannaert also appointed a CEO for Club NXT and YLA, the blue-black women’s team, with Guilian Preud’homme.

Caluwé joined the sporting cell of KV Mechelen in 2018, where he quickly made an impression in the shadow of sporting director Stefaan Vanroy. Once that was pushed aside because of the Clean Hands file, Caluwé came to the fore. Though that’s said a lot – the simple Red Devil doesn’t like to be in the spotlight. Together with Wouter Vrancken, he formed an excellent tandem in the past successful seasons of KV Mechelen, without ever drawing attention to himself. At Club Brugge, Caluwé also has to work closely with Carl Hoefkens and his sporting staff. As well as the scouting cell, which has recently been expanded considerably with the appointment of Dévy Rigaux as recruitment manager and Kjeld Ford as recruitment coordinator.

In football circles, Caluwé, who lives in Londerzeel, is known as a sober, realistic manager. Someone who is very human and pleasant to deal with. A sporty pawn who never makes impulsive or thoughtless decisions. Football content to catch on few mistakes, without ever blowing high from the tower. It is with this professional knowledge and his personality that he has made an impression in recent years, including at some top clubs. Club’s interest has been there for a while, but now the right time had come for all parties.

Caluwé is said to be extremely driven and ambitious – which is why he gradually reached his limits at Malinwa, where he has put together a competitive and balanced player core on a small budget in recent years. His modesty, however, prevented him from ever saying that himself: “I’m ready for a step higher, but it won’t be easy. I am ‘a Cockerel’ in heart and soul,” it sounded in an interview in your newspaper at the end of last year.

Caluwé was also never the big caller as a football player, despite his beautiful career in Belgium and the Netherlands. The offensive midfielder ended his career at the age of 34, although he still plays football today. The new sports manager of Club Brugge does this for the veteran team Lindelhoeven VV, which Nicolas Frutos and Gunther Van Handenhoven previously played for. Whether he will have time for that in the service of the ruthless and larger blue-black remains to be seen.