GAMES Anderlecht has dropped valuable points again. They lost 1-0 at Charleroi, a late goal in which goalkeeper Coosemans made a mistake. Anderlecht played poorly again before halftime and recovered twenty minutes after the break, but their play was sloppy and their finishing was poor. Hazard hit the post with his chest, and Bertaccini's aim was misaligned on several occasions. Anderlecht can catch up with plenty of clubs in the standings this weekend. They cannot afford any slip-ups next week in the Croky Cup and in the league (at home against Mechelen).
The first half was unwatchable. Anderlecht failed to create a decent chance, let alone mount an attack. We only saw a few weak shots from the Purple & White side. Anderlecht played incredibly sloppily, with several crosses being sent far too low.
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Continue reading Not that Charleroi played particularly well, but they did win many more duels and were dangerous on several occasions down the wings, where Anderlecht struggled. Coosemans also had a stroke of luck when a rebound could easily have ended up in the net.
After the break, Bertaccini and Stroeykens replaced Cvetkovic and Sardella. Anderlecht finally came out of the dressing room and had a chance immediately after kickoff, but Hazard just couldn't connect a header. A good five minutes later, Hazard hit the post with his chest. Bertaccini had another good chance on the hour mark, but he saved his shot.
Around the 70th minute, Anderlecht had to release the pressure and Charleroi got back into the game. Anderlecht were caught cold in the 82nd minute when Keita headed the ball into the net from a corner at the far post. Admittedly, with considerable help from Coosemans, who made a serious dent under the corner. A rare mistake by the goalkeeper, although Keita wasn't sufficiently hindered in the match either. Since Anderlecht had already been in the doldrums for a while, it wasn't easy to turn the tide, especially since only three minutes were added on.
Things are gradually going from bad to worse. Scoring remains a problem, as does the inconsistent quality of play during the matches. Tonight, Anderlecht performed at a reasonable level for about twenty minutes, creating a few chances, but the difference compared to the rest of the match was again alarmingly large. Anderlecht faces Mechelen next weekend with a knife to their throat and shouldn't underestimate their cup challenge. After all, everyone remembers the memorable slip-ups against Ingelmunster and Rupel-Boom.
