OH LEUVEN – KVC WESTERLO

Alea iacta est — the die is cast. The defeat in Charleroi means that all remaining matches in Play-off 2 will be glorified friendlies.

Our Kemphanen can still equal or break a record: exactly 25 years ago, we finished the season with 73 goals scored. If we score 6 more this season, we’ll be on par.

KVC Westerlo

Once again: entertainment, effort, and a thrilling match for the neutral fan — but no points.

Giving away a 1–3 lead is never pleasant, especially not after having controlled the match for over an hour. Two great goals by our Japanese winger Isa Sakamoto — who was preferred over Allayhar on the left flank — helped establish that lead.

Will coach Timmy Simons now deviate from his principle of “you earn your place during the training week”? That was the question in the press conference. His answer was clear: “If it’s fifty-fifty between two players, the one with fewer minutes will get his chance.”

We’ll have to wait and see. One thing is certain: captain Dogucan Haspolat will be watching from the stands in Leuven after receiving a second yellow card in minute 97 last week.

Voting is now open on our website for the “Kemphaan of the Season”. Who will succeed Arthur Piedfort? We took a look at who holds the highest average rating on the renowned SofaScore platform. Seven players earned an average rating of 7/10 or higher (or just about): Luka Vuskovic (7.33), Dogucan Haspolat (7.31), Allayhar Sayyadmanesh (7.11), Tuur Rommens (7.03), Alfie Devine (6.99), Griffin Yow and Matija Frigan (6.98).

Five of them made 30 or more starts: Dogucan (38), Tuur (37), Bryan (36), Luka (33), and Matija (31).

And last but not least, four players contributed to more than 10 goals: Matija scored 14 and provided 2 assists, Allayhar was involved in 13 goals (7 goals, 6 assists), while Griffin and Dogucan were each involved in 11. Griffin netted 8 times, while Dogucan delivered 8 assists.

We’ll find out who the winner is next week after our final home match of the season.

OH Leuven

The 5–0 defeat in Dender surely came as a shock in Leuven — especially for a team that had kept a clean sheet in a third of their league matches.

To be fair, just like us, they’re not particularly fond of FCV Dender’s physical style of play — a team that has scored 9 goals against them in these play-offs alone.

Being 4–0 down after just 30 minutes is harsh. So harsh that coach Chris Coleman decided at halftime to substitute both strikers — Zeefuik and Mitrovic — and bring on fresh legs with Verlinden and Ikwuemesi.

These play-offs haven’t brought what OH Leuven hoped for. Their first six matches all ended in draws, and the last two — against KV Mechelen (1–2) and Dender — ended in defeat.

Their top-rated player on SofaScore is captain Siebe Schrijvers (7.20), followed by Tobe Leysen (7.14) and Dutchman Banzuzi (7.03).

The latter is the club’s assist king with 5 and has already secured his dream transfer: he will join German side RB Leipzig in July.

Fifteen different players have scored for Leuven this season, but only two did so more than three times: Schrijvers (7 goals) and Ikwuemesi (6).

Referee

Klass Clerkx, a 32-year-old referee affiliated with Sportkring Meeuwen, will officiate his second match in Belgium’s top division.

Last month, he made his top-flight debut in Dender vs Charleroi (2–1), after having successfully officiated 64 matches in various lower divisions.

Text and statistics: Peter Boons