Seventh derby win in a row

Get off to a flying start. That was coach Blessin's advice to his troops and it was heeded. Nieuwkoop fed Lapoussin in the box after less than two minutes. His dribble was successful and only goalkeeper Dupé was able to prevent Union from scoring the first goal.

Anderlecht seem surprised by Union's intensity. Shortly afterwards, Nieuwkoop intercepted the ball perfectly and hit Dupé's post.

An amazing first half

The fans in the Parc Duden didn't stop either. In the East Stand, the chants and shouts grew louder and louder as new signing Kevin Mac Allister went close to opening the scoring. The Argentinian defender saw his effort from a corner cleared off the line.

Just when Union looked as they slowed the amount of chances down, Moris found Lapoussin with a long ball. The winger saw Eckert Ayensa's run. The German striker did not hesitate for a second and scored the first goal of Union's 2023/24 Jupiler Pro League campaign. 1-0 to Saint-Gilles!

The first half was not over yet. Eckert Ayensa's header almost doubled the score but hit the crossbar. After the first 45 minutes, the 22 protagonists went to the dressing room to recover from an intense first half.

Crazy end to the game

In the second half, Anderlecht's chances were slightly better. With the Unionists positing themselves lower down the pitch, Sporting were able to threaten more, although without any real danger.

The game ended in crazy fashion. Dolberg suddenly found himself one-on-one with Moris, but the Union captain was able to clear the danger.

The main protagonists during the last moments of the game were referee Bram Van Driessche, Jan Vertonghen and VAR. Senne Lynen's breakaway resulted in the ball landing on Vertonghen's back inside the sixteen-yard box. The defender could have received a red earlier after an ippon on Gustaf Nilsson.

Belgian football history

Van Driessche awarded a penalty for a handball by Vertonghen, but VAR did not intervene. Puertas made it 2-0. This is our seventh derby win in a row against RSC Anderlecht.

It's the longest run of consecutive defeats for the Mauves et Blancs (alongside Club Brugge's record from 1996 to 1999) in the history of Belgian football.