GAMES Riemer may no longer sit on the bench, but on the field, there was still little to enjoy. Watching Anderlecht's current style of play was at times painful. Charleroi easily held their ground without much effort, even on the offensive end. Koné made a save from Sardella's shot before halftime, and Anderlecht only had their first real chance in stoppage time, with Angulo missing a cross from Amuzu in front of an empy goal. On Wednesday, the Mauves will need to step up again in the Europa League.
As expected, there was no immediate transformation for Anderlecht. They played slowly with frequent turnovers. The lines were too far apart, and movement was lacking. Their performance was once again poor, although they did show some promise from the half-hour mark until just before halftime. Sardella came closest to scoring with a shot, but Koné made an excellent save. Anderlecht, however, didn't create any real chances. Charleroi had one major opportunity: in the second minute, Heymans was alone at the far post, but Coosemans made one of his weekly saves. Defensively, Anderlecht was not troubled before halftime.
Continue reading below the articleContinue reading After the break, Anderlecht attempted to take control. Koné saved a header from Dendoncker in the 54th minute, although the goal would likely have been disallowed for a foul by Dolberg. Ten minutes later, Verschaeren had a go, but the ball went wide. Hubert substituted Verschaeren and Rits for Amuzu and Leoni in the 71st minute.
The match continued with a few near chances for Anderlecht, but they simply couldn't make a real impact. They lacked the necessary touch of class to convert even half-chances into scoring opportunities. In fact, they only had one significant chance late in the game; their first real chance of the match. Angulo slid a cross from Amuzu wide of an empty goal. Shortly after, a turnover by Angulo led to a break by Mbenza, but Coosemans remained alert.
