Hans Vanaken: “I remember the dominance”
Club Brugge lost 2-1 at KV Mechelen. A visibly disappointed captain looked back on the first defeat of the season. “Of course I'm not satisfied with this result. Even though we were dominant, it wasn’t easy against a low block. However, we had enough chances to win. Not always big chances, but moments where the ball just needed to fall right. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case tonight.”
“A lot has been written this past week about our goalkeepers, but Nordin stood firm today. He made a number of very good saves.”
In the second half, Blauw-Zwart pushed forward, but ultimately couldn’t turn the tide. “I remember the dominance, the fact that we kept looking for openings and opportunities. We did that for the full 90 minutes. You do run the risk of getting caught out on a counterattack. We need to defend better in those situations. The 2-0 was unfortunate, and then it becomes difficult.”
“On Wednesday, RB Salzburg awaits, and now we have to prepare for that and switch the focus,” he concluded, disappointed by Blauw-Zwart’s first defeat of the season.
Nicky Hayen: “A defeat that shouldn't have happened"
“It’s a defeat that shouldn’t have happened,” Hayen said shortly after the match. “It’s a bit of a copy from the start of last season, but also from last week. We just don’t start sharply enough. The desire to win in the last 30 to 35 minutes is greater than in the first 60, and that drive needs to be there from the first whistle. We guide the players, but it also has to come from themselves and through their own coaching. At times that works very well, as we saw in the second half, but we need to keep that mentality up for much longer.”
“The team isn’t fully complete yet, so you’ve got a lot of players who can play 15 to 30 minutes and who arrived later. All of that adds up to a situation where you're not yet 100% ready but you have to be. That’s something we try to instill every day, as well as that sharpness. Yesterday in training that was there, so I had hoped we could carry that through today. We did manage that in the last half hour, but not in the first sixty minutes.”
Transition moments were also mentioned. “We play with a lot of space behind us, and that’s one thing we addressed. Everyone has to fulfill their defensive duties, and in transition everyone has to put in the work. That’s also a matter of mindset, and everyone has to work for each other. These are points we’ll take with us. But we need to look ahead to the next match quickly.”
Vermant and Reis were frustrated when subbed off around the hour mark. “I discuss everything with the players, so we’ll just analyze that calmly. We’ll also go over it using video. When you’re 2-0 behind, I don’t think you can say much as a player. It was the same last week. Together with the staff, we try to analyze and talk things through with the players.”
Forbs made a good impression coming on, but isn’t ready for 90 minutes yet. “He’s not close enough for even 45 minutes yet, otherwise I would’ve brought him on earlier today. Don’t forget, he hasn’t played many matches over the last two years. We could take that risk, but then you’re possibly looking at an injury down the line. We have to integrate him very gradually, and the way he came on today was sharp and good. Of course we hope to increase his minutes soon, but right now, caution is key,” concluded coach Hayen.