Manchester City goes down 3-1 in gala match

FLASHBACK Georges Heylens had his testimonial match at Anderlecht in 1970, as was customary when a player had spent ten years at the club. At that time, however, he had just lost his place in the starting lineup. On November 18 of that year, the purple and white team won 3-1 against Manchester City.

A 12-page match program was also published, sold for 10 francs.

The match was expected to generate around 750,000 francs. This came in handy for Heylens. Besides football, he was also interested in business. He had opened about four shops in Brussels, but things were not going as planned. He had to borrow 750,000 francs from chairman Vanden Stock to cover his expenses. The amount raised from the testimonial match was immediately considered to have settled that debt.

Heylens was perhaps the first modern (right) back: he could push forward along the flank but was also defensively strong. In 1965, he was included in the European XI alongside Paul Van Himst. This was a great honor in itself, as players like Eusébio were also part of that team.

Heylens spent his entire playing career at Anderlecht: from 1960 (when he came in to replace Lauren Verbiest) until 1973 in the first team, and before that, from 1951 in the youth ranks. His career ended in the cup final against Standard on May 27, 1973, when he tore his ligaments. It was an injury he never fully recovered from. He played a total of 361 matches for the first team and earned 67 caps for Belgium. Afterwards, he pursued a career as a coach at various clubs, including Union.

In 2006, Heylens became involved in a scandal and was suspected of money laundering and gang involvement. Heylens was connected to a case dealing with luxury cars. A check for 7.3 million dollars from a Greek businessman was deemed suspicious and was legally investigated. Georges Heylens was ultimately acquitted, but the company's manager was convicted. In 2008, Heylens returned to football as the coach of second-division side UR Namur.

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