On Sunday, March 9th, it's time for the penultimate matchday of the regular season. Club will face Cercle Brugge in the city derby. Find out everything there is to know below!
The Fixture
On Sunday, Club Brugge will play the derby "away" at their own Jan Breydel Stadium against Cercle Brugge. It will be the 160th meeting in the First Division between the Bruges neighbors. The previous 79 away matches against the green and black resulted in 43 wins for Blue and Black (last time 1-2 on 28/01/2021), 18 draws (last time 1-1 on 01/04/2024), and 18 losses (last time 2-0 on 26/12/2021).
Earlier this season, Club managed to beat Cercle at home 3-0. Just before halftime, Brandon Mechele headed in a free kick. Shortly after, Christos Tzolis finished off a well-played attack for the 2-0. After the break, Andreas Skov Olsen set the final score at 3-0. It was the first win in the last 6 encounters against Cercle (5D).
Club Brugge has not been able to win the away derby for 4 matches in a row (3D 1L). The last three away encounters all ended in a draw. If Club Brugge can beat their neighbors again on Sunday, it will be the first time in four seasons that they achieve 6 out of 6 against Cercle.
Gustaf Nilsson (9 goals) and Hans Vanaken (8 assists) are still the top scorer and assist king at Club.
Club has scored in 26 consecutive league matches. Only in the away match at Standard did Club fail to score in the league. Last season, Club also failed to score in a nerve-wracking home match against Cercle in the playoffs, but the 0-0 was enough to celebrate the nineteenth national title.
No Joaquin Seys, out injured. Hugo Vetlesen must avoid a yellow card to not miss the last match of the regular season against Charleroi.
The Opponent
On Sunday, Cercle will be the host in the Bruges derby. It is the 80th time in the First Division that they organize the derby at home. Cercle has not won a JPL match for 6 games in a row (5D 1L). The Association is in 12th place in the ranking, just above the relegation play-offs line.
At the beginning of December, Austrian coach Miron Muslic was dismissed as coach. His compatriot Ferdinand Feldhofer (45) succeeded him, who has been active as a trainer since 2015. Previously, he was at the helm of Rapid Wien, Wolfsberger AC, and Dinamo Tbilisi, among others.
Under their new coach, Cercle has lost only once: away to leader Genk. However, the club has only managed to win 3 times in the JPL under Feldhofer. The last victory dates back to January 18th at Dender (0-1). In their last 9 home matches, Cercle managed to keep a clean sheet 6 times.
In Europe, Cercle experienced a fairy tale in the Conference League. They survived 3 preliminary rounds in Europe and ended in the renewed League phase of the Conference League in a beautiful 8th place. The 3-0 defeat in Poland last Thursday puts a significant dent in their chances for the quarter-finals.
The top scorers of Cercle are Felipe Augusto, Abdoul Kader Ouattara, and Thibo Somers, who all scored twice. Abu Francis and Nazinho are the assist kings (4 assists).
Despite a red card in the previous match, Feldhofer can still call upon defender Christiaan Ravych. The player, who has a history at the Club Academy, received only a conditional suspension. Cercle cannot rely on injured players Senna Miangue, Dalangunypole Gomis, and Abdoul Kader Ouattara due to injuries.
Milestones
- It is the 60th official match of Club under coach Nicky Hayen.
- Brandon Mechele can play his 350th league match for Club Brugge!
- Jorne Spileers is awaiting his 50th league match for Blue and Black.
- For Kyriani Sabbe, it could be the 40th JPL match for Club.
- Romeo Vermant can play his 30th league match for FCB.
The Man in Black
Mr. Bram Van Driessche has been appointed as the referee for the derby.
He will be assisted by linesmen Michele Seeldraeyers and Quentin Lesceux. The fourth official is Kevin Van Damme. Simon Bourdeaud'hui will take on the role of VAR, flanked by Lennert Jans and Christophe Snoeck.
Van Driessche will officiate his 33rd official match for Club Brugge. The previous 16 away matches under his leadership resulted in 9 wins, 4 draws, and 3 losses for Club. This will be his first Bruges derby as a referee.