Archives 2007-2008

National champion Anderlecht had high hopes for the season 2007-2008. The club was to celebrate its centenary in 2008 and preferred to add lustre to this with the 30th national championship title. After the convincing 3-1 win over Club Bruges in the Supercup at the end of July, Sporting were immediately pitchforked into the main competitor for the title. RSCA, however, fell short of expectations in the first round. Many points were lost and, after five ties and two defeats in thirteen matches, coach Franky Vercauteren was dismissed. Assistant coach Ariël Jacobs took over. Even after the exchange, Sporting had to keep on searching for their good shape. After the winter break, Jacobs’ team had to catch up with the then leader Club Bruges, who had a lead of no less than thirteen points. RSCA was ranked seventh at the time, as a result of which European football seemed very far away back then. Anderlecht, however, put up an extremely good second round with fourteen wins, two defeats and one tie. Because of this impressive round, RSCA even caught up with Club Bruges – meanwhile, the team from Bruges had been forced to leave the first position to Standard – and in a mutual battle on the last but one games day, Sporting showed that they were the best, in defeating the team from West-Flanders 2-0 at the Constant Vanden Stock stadium. Sporting had reached the second position on the league table and, accordingly, the ticket to enter the Champions League preliminaries. Ultimately, Anderlecht only had to let Standard precede them. The Rouches played a very good season – they just lost once – and finished with a seven-point lead over RSCA.

Apart from that, RSC Anderlecht reached a nice peak, following a difficult season. Jacobs’ team did not just finish second, they were also able to win the Belgian Cup. Sporting beat Hamme (2-1), Waasland (2-0), Dender (3-0 home, 1-1 away), GB (1-0 home, 1-1 away) respectively and, finally, they took on KAA Ghent in the finals. Sporting won the cup final 2-3 and, like this, were able to win the Belgian Cup for the ninth time in the history of the club – and for the first time since 1994. So, RSCA was able to take home a trophy in the year of their centenary all the same!

Just like in the Belgian league, RSCA did not start of their season all too well in Europe. In the final Champions League qualifying round, Anderlecht was not able to defeat the Turkish Fenerbahçe (1-0 away, 0-2 home). Although they were not on a roll, Anderlecht got through the Uefa Cup first round one way or another, by defeating Rapid Wien. At home, the match ended in a one-all draw and, on the field of Vienna, Sporting won 0-1. In the group stage, RSCA were placed in group G with Hapoel Tel-Aviv, Aalborg, Getafe and Tottenham. Anderlecht were to finish in third position and, like this, qualify for the round of the last thirty-two of the Uefa Cup, where they encountered Bordeaux. The team from France were playing a nice season. At the Astridpark, Anderlecht beat the French team 2-1 and, in Bordeaux, Sporting managed to qualify for the next round with a one-all draw. In the round of the last sixteen, Sporting once again faced a great opponent: no less a team than the German Bayern Munich. Anderlecht were taken down 0-5 in the first leg, but Sporting were still able to leave Europe with head held high, as they won 1-2 in Munich one week later. A nice conclusion for the European campaign.

Sporting’s U21 team finished the season in the tenth position of the league table. They only won thirteen matches out of thirty-four, played six draws and were defeated fifteen times. Finally, the team concluded the season with forty-five points. The Anderlecht U21 team scored fifty-three times and had to take fifty-eight goals.

The Sporting Anderlecht Ladies finished the season 2007-2008 in second position, for the third year in a row. The Ladies concluded the season with sixty-four points, won twenty out of twenty-six matches and, finally, finished only two points behind national champion KVK Tienen. The RSCA Ladies scored seventy-eight times and took seventeen goals. In the Belgian Cup, RSCA also went to the limit, but in the cup final, the Ladies had to taste defeat – against Tienen once more. The Ladies lost the Belgian Cup Final after penalties (1-1 after ninety minutes).