Antwerp
Club Brugge
- 1′ – Yellow – Vincent Janssen
- 41′ – Cont. Bjorn Meijer by Kyriani Sabbe
- 48′ – Own goal – Toby Alderweireld (0 – 1)
- 55′ – Yellow – Zeno Van Den Bosch
- 62′ – Cont. Jurgen Ekkelenkamp by Michel Ange Balikwisha
- 62′ – Cont. Eliot Matazo by Alhassan Yusuf
- 62′ – Cont. Jacob Ondrejka by Gyrano Church
- 64′ – Goal – Andreas Skov Olsen (0 – 2)
- 65′ – Yellow – Joel Ordóñez
- 67′ – Goal penalty – Michel Ange Balikwisha (1 – 2)
- 72′ – Cont. Antonio Nusa by Michal Skóras
- 73′ – Cont. Andreas Skov Olsen by Philip Zinckernagel
- 83′ – Cont. Hugo Vetlesen by Casper Nielsen
- 90+4′ – Yellow – Soumaïla Coulibaly
Jupiler Pro League – matchday 7 – 05/05/24 – 13:32
| time | icon | player | homeTime | homeIcon | homePlayer | score | awayPlayer | awayIcon | awayTime |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 48′ | Toby Alderweireld | 0 – 1 | Toby Alderweireld | 48′ | |||||
| 64′ | Andreas Skov Olsen | 0 – 2 | Andreas Skov Olsen | 64′ | |||||
| 67′ | Michel Ange Balikwisha | 67′ | Michel Ange Balikwisha | 1 – 2 |
19 out of 21 for Club Brugge. Despite the European defeat against Fiorentina, blue-black continues to progress in the play-offs. Club did not have it easy against Antwerp: it took a lucky goal and a flash of class from Skov Olsen to open up the match. After a tying goal, Hayen and co even had to shiver.
Antwerp – Club Brugge in a nutshell:
- Key moment: On the hour mark, Antwerp comes close to making it 1-1, but both Balikwisha and Ilenikhena arrive too late on Kerk’s cross. Shortly afterwards, Club doubled its lead thanks to a flash of class from Skov Olsen. A goal that ultimately gave Club the three points.
- Man of the match: Simon Mignolet took his place in the Club goal again due to an injury to Nordin Jackers and it was a great return for the goalkeeper. In the first half he kept Club afloat with four crucial saves.
- Remarkable: A bizarre goal by Vetlesen after a kick from Moris, a cross by Sabbe that blew in after a mistake by McKenzie and an unfortunate own goal by Alderweireld. When visiting Union, Racing Genk and Antwerp, Club took the lead with a lucky goal. Champion’s luck?
Antwerp collides with very strong Mignolet
The question of whether Antwerp would go all out on a few days of the cup final against Union was answered after just 4 seconds. Janssen knocked over Onyedika and thus received the fastest yellow card ever in Belgian football.
It was the starting signal for a stormy start for the home team. Mignolet, back in goal due to an injury at Jackers, had to make a spectacular save on a long shot from Ejuke before the first five minutes were over.
As quickly the storm arose, it subsided just as quickly. Club Brugge came into the match better and with a nice volley Vanaken also put Lammens to work. The Antwerp goalkeeper also made a save on Nusa’s attempt.
Club increasingly monopolized possession of the ball and yet continued to pay attention to the visitors. Ejuke was able to score again from far away, and again Mignolet saved the day for Club. Shortly before half-time, the Club goalkeeper repeated that trick twice more. First he parried a long shot from Alderweireld, then he dived well into the feet of Janssen who had broken through.
Lucky goal helps Club get back in the saddle
Shortly after the break, Club Brugge had luck on its side, not for the first time in these Champions’ Play-offs. A harmless cross from De Cuyper unfortunately deviated towards Alderweireld, leaving Lammens without a chance.
On the hour mark, Antwerp suddenly came close to the equalizer. Launched by a wonderful heel from Yusuf, Kerk brought the ball sharply in front of goal, but Balikwisha and Ilenikhena slid in just too late. From almost 1-1 it went to 0-2 shortly afterwards thanks to a flash of class from Skov Olsen. The Dane curled the ball beautifully past Lammens.
It seemed like it was all over for Antwerp, but Ordonez threw the home team a lifeline with a penalty violation on Balikwisha. He took the penalty and gave the home team some hope again.
Yet, all in all, Club easily held on. There was a brief commotion when Kerk went down in the box after a tackle by De Cuyper, but both ref Vergoote and the VAR saw no violation. Club took its sixth win in a row in the Champions’ Play-offs and is currently alone in the lead.
Press conference and post-match reactions:
Phase by phase
End
Club once again takes full advantage in these Champions’ Play-offs. Blue and Black took the lead with a good dose of luck through an unfortunate own goal by Alderweireld. A flash of class from Skov Olsen gave the visitors a little more breathing space, but thanks to a penalty goal from Balikwisha it still became exciting. Club held its ground and thus becomes the sole leader for the time being. The pressure is on Anderlecht and Union.
Nielsen can completely decide the match, but his crossed shot goes wide. Yet Club is inching closer to another victory.
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