“This was the worst match in a year and a half”: Antwerp coach Mark van Bommel is strict in his judgment after loss in Genk

What was the reason according to Van Bommel? “The will to win every game was there at Genk and absolutely not at us. That you are aggrieved or want to correct a colleague’s mistakes. In addition, there were many technical errors in the implementation. Normally you have three or four guys who, at one time or another, play below their level. You can still perform with a permanent team. But today we had eight or nine.”

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“Maybe it also has to do with the beautiful but difficult year we have had. And that we have been beaten in the Champions League in recent months. They took some patching up, although I don’t want to use that as an excuse for what happened today. It does not detract from Genk’s profit.”

Due to the fuss in Anderlecht-Genk, many eyes were focused on referee Jonathan Lardot this afternoon. Did Van Bommel think that the referee had good control of the game? “I might ask to replay the match sometime, then we might have a chance,” the Dutchman still managed to laugh. “You should absolutely not look to Lardot, on the contrary. I didn’t like us. He wasn’t great, but he wasn’t bad either.”

Toby Alderweireld and Antwerp conclude 2023 in a minor key: “But let’s not dramatize this”

“We have to look purely at ourselves. It wasn’t good enough,” Toby Alderweireld took his word for it after the clear defeat on the Genk field. “Genk was good and we did not deliver what we are capable of. The duels were for Genk, the second balls too and we were definitely not threatening enough.”

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But what is that about? The motivation, the field, the commotion in the run-up to this match? “Maybe the fuss subconsciously has something to do with it, but we have prepared ourselves like for other competitions. Once again, we have ourselves to thank for this. This was not due to the field or the calendar. We didn’t bring the required intensity for the day. And then you are one step late everywhere.”

Van Bommel never saw his team drop below the limit before this off-day. This was achieved in Genk. “This was indeed our least match since his arrival. And so is mine. It was just too much of a match. Too bad, because for Westerlo (2-2) we really had a good period.”

The 3-0 is the final achievement of what has been a great 2023 for the Great Old. “We cannot dramatize these last two matches now. This will hurt for a few more days, but after that we can be proud of what we have achieved in 2023 and we can enjoy it. Let these lesser matches be the fuel to go all out in 2024, because there is still a lot to play for,” Alderweireld concluded 2023 with the necessary motivation.

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Jean Butez: “If we are not all there, we cannot achieve anything in Genk”

“This is simply a deserved defeat,” goalkeeper Jean Butez did not hide his disappointment after the 3-0 loss against KRC Genk. “Mentally we were not in the right place from the beginning. We were also sloppy from a technical point of view. We can now talk about tactical choices, but if you don’t score well on the two points I just listed, it will be difficult to gain anything here.”

Whatever Mark van Bommel tried throughout the match, the interventions had no effect. “After the break we tried to adjust, with Balikwisha and Ejuke on the flanks, but that changed little,” Butez also noted. “Once again: if we are not all there together, we cannot win here. This is a big disappointment, especially against a direct competitor for the Champions’ Play-offs.”

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