May month is traditionally an open-door month. Despite those five goals against at Kuipje on Sunday – that was ago from 2012, the spectacular 5-5 in the Belgian Cup against STVV – we did not feel the door was wide open. We were also denied two penalties and what about Nene’s hat-trick. That fell completely through after such a defeat.

KVC Westerlo

Numbers never lie. Ons Westel are not in great form at the moment. Meanwhile, it has been six games since we left the field with the full score. An exceptionally good season thus gets a sour aftertaste. If we consult the stats, we even rank fifth ever in the last 50 years of clubs that have made the promotion from second to first division in the Belgian league.  We also score well in the rest of Europe. After Brann Bergen, Stabaek (both Norway), Orenburg (Russia) and Girona (Spain), we are the best riser in the 20 best leagues in Europe this season. So bravo Kemphans!

A move to Standard is no gift, although our Kemphians can play liberated. The sickbay has also gained 2 more players: Vaesen and Vetokele will not be there for the next few games.

Did you know?

• Sinan Bolat is currently on 10 clean-sheets, taking him one away from his record in 17/18 and 18/19, when he managed to keep the zero on the board 11 times with Royal Antwerp FC.
• Bryan Reynolds was under contract with AS Roma for half a year last season and thus had a part in winning the Conference League. Indeed, he played in one group game against Norwegian Bodo/Glimt.
• Roman Neustädter has barely been suspended three times in his prolific career (553 matches) for excessive card load.
• Ravil Tagir is also a “good” central defender? Who even got his first yellow card only after four seasons of professional football. On matchday 10 of this season, he got his first ever in minute 56 from Boucaut.
• Maxim De Cuyper’s season will most likely not end after the Europe Play Offs. Our national U21 have 3 matches scheduled from 21 to 27 June. The Netherlands, Georgia and Portugal will be the opponents at the European Championship in Georgia and Romania.
• Mathias Fixelles has really been on every position on the pitch – except as a goalkeeper – in his professional career.
• Lukas Van Eenoo and Thomas Van Den Keybus have the same player’s agent, namely Kyan Vaesen’s father.
• Yusuke Matsuo’s club, the Urawa Red Diamonds, won the final of the Asian Champions League this week. Yusuke had a big part in winning this prestigious cup, as he scored no less than five goals in the group stage and also managed to work the ball against the ropes in the semi-final.
• Nacer Chadli could go on to play his 500th professional game in these Play Offs. He currently sits at 497 professional games.
• Last week, Nene Dorgeles managed to score a hat-trick for the first time in his young career.

Standard Liege

The Rouches too had imagined their start in these Play Offs differently. With a 1/6, they too must go in pursuit of Gent.

In their own Sclessin, thanks to the support of their ardent supporters, they can always do just a bit more. However, they are not unbeatable on their own field, Gent (2-2), OH Leuven (1-3), Seraing (0-2), Union (2-3), Sint-Truiden (1-1), Kortrijk (0-2) and last week again Gent (1-2) already managed to pick up points in Liege.

Did-you-know?

• Arnaud Bodart is on coach Tedesco’s radar, now that fourth goalkeeper Kaminski has ended up on the bench at his club.
• The same goalkeeper is the only player who has featured in every match. Remarkably, he was shown a red card for hand-play in the previous encounter between them, but was not suspended by the Pro League.
• Right-back Marlon Fossey was voted player of the month at the Liège club last month.
• The Cypriot defender Laifis is in the all-time top 10 of games played at Standard. With his 255, he is still a short way off the top five.
• Their most valuable player is Colombian Steven Alzate. He scored the equaliser against Gent just last weekend. In minute 84, he had to leave the pitch after two yellow cards and will have to miss this match.
• Philip Zinckernagel blew over the whole of the Norwegian Eliteserien in 2020 with his 19 goals and 24 assists in one season, securing a transfer to England’s Watford.
• Then again, Brussels-born and raised flanker William Balikwisha made his debut in the DR Congo national team last year. On 24 March, he entered the field in a match against Mauritania after playing for a good hour.
• They especially scored their home goals in the last quarter of each half of play, hitting ten between minutes 30-45 and eight between minutes 75-90.
• In total, they were allowed to put the ball on the dot nine times, seven times in a home game and twice in an away game. Only Renaud Emond missed his 11-metre, Zinckernagel hit the target three times, Dussenne scored two from the dot and the now departed Amallah also scored three times.

Nicolas Laforge

In the current season we had this 36-year-old referee in following matches, i.e. he was the one who whistled our last victory match.

KVC Westerlo – RFC Seraing 2-2
KVC Westerlo – KV Oostende 6-0
KV Oostende – KVC Westerlo 1-2
RFC Seraing – KVC Westerlo 1-1

Looking further into the past, before those 2 away games this season, we had also had him on loan four times. Now those results were not immediately to write home about.

KAS Eupen – KVC Westerlo 3-0
AA Gent – KVC Westerlo 4-0
KV Oostende – KVC Westerlo 2-0
Mouscron – KVC Westerlo 0-0

Text and statistics: Peter Boons