Antwerp were hoping to overcome the Catalan effects they had suffered in the Champions League, but were clearly still impressed by the footballing lesson they had learned at Barcelona.
I experienced a low block with RWDM that intentionally left possession of the ball to the opponent. Antwerp may have had an advantage in these proportions, but it did not know what to do with them.
RWDM excelled in defense and looked for counterattacks when Antwerp made a mistake. That led to very little in the first half. And a sluggish and uninspiring Antwerp, who played their worst half of the season, barely scored anything.
The fact that the first ball fell between the posts only in the second half says it all. This was not even true for the national champion, much more so. Guy passed a corner kick well towards the goal, but Botez received it easily. The first chance of the match went to RWDM.
If things aren’t going well in football, sometimes the football gods are on their side. They appeared to lend a helping hand when Smit was called into a screen after a light foot on Segovia’s calf on Janssen in the 16th minute. Defourny jumped in the right direction and denied Janssen a 1-0 lead with a penalty kick.
A few minutes later, Kamara Fendahl ran into the penalty area, no VAR was needed, and Smit immediately pointed to the penalty area. But Janssen also failed in the restoration process. Both the striker and goalkeeper changed their stance. Defourney silenced the football gods.
The RWDM goalkeeper also proved unbeatable in the final. Janssen tried doggedly, but Devourney was determined to keep the scoreline against his former team.
On the other hand, it was another Antwerp player, Pierre Domoh Junior, who was on the verge of completely destroying the home team.
But it remained 0-0. A worse result for Antwerp than the defeat in Barcelona this week. The anti-hangover pill turned out to be extremely bitter.
“Subtly charming internet specialist. Avid writer. Friendly alcohol guru. Music ninja. Devoted social media fanatic.”
More Stories
Zino Debast’s father speaks out about leaving Anderlecht – Transfer News
Decisive first match and instant hero: Thibaut Courtois celebrates his return in style to Real Madrid
Tim Merlier is not afraid of uneven sprints: “I worked hard to climb better”