© Isosport
Thursday evening there is one more quarterfinal on the program of the Croky Cup, and that is not the least poster: Union against AA Gent. The Buffalos won the cup last season after a penalty win against Anderlecht and they undoubtedly want to do that trick again. “They have been participating for years to the end. We are on our guard”, said Union coach Karel Geraerts.
Thomas Cami
After the derby win against Anderlecht last Sunday, the Unionists immediately had to look ahead to the cup cracker against AA Gent. “Of course we want to win that match,” said Geraerts. “That is the ambition we have for every match, and that will not change because it is now a cup match. Or maybe we take the cup a little less seriously because we also participate in the competition and the Europa League? No of course not. That’s not how we reason. We never want to miss matches, we always play to win. The group and I have no problem playing all those games, so we will try to get as far as possible.”
Clear language from Geraerts, who may need the cup less than his colleague Hein Vanhaezebrouck: Ghent is currently fifth and risks missing out on the Champions’ play-offs, so winning the cup may be extra important for the Buffalos. “Ghent is a cup team, that has been the case for years,” Geraerts also sees. “But apart from that, it is also just a very good team with a very strong coach. Hein is very clear in his way of working and he solves certain problems in a natural way. And Ghent is also a strong team on the field: they have many good players and a good bench. It is a solid whole, so we are certainly on our guard,” said the 41-year-old Limburger.
However, a win against Ghent could be a golden thing for Union. Antwerp or Genk is afterwards the only top club that is in the tournament, so the road to Heysel may be open. “But we will see who is where after the game. I’m really not working on that yet”, Geraerts remains calm.
© BELGIUM
