GAMES Anderlecht and away matches remain a major problem. The Purple & White lost 4-2 in Ghent, having led 1-2 until the 81st minute, thanks to two goals from Angulo. After the break, Anderlecht did absolutely nothing to extend their lead. They immediately fell back, completely handing Gent the initiative, which completely backfired in the final stages after goals from Araujo and Dean. In the final minute, Goore made it 4-2 in an empty net.
Anderlecht started strongly this time, and Gent were nowhere to be seen for ten minutes. The Purple & White also scored quickly when Angulo managed to deflect a header from Cvetkovic on a corner into the net with a bit of luck. N'Diaye had to replace an injured Augustinsson after a few minutes.
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Continue reading Around the fifteen minute mark, Gent made their first push, and Coosemans had to make several clever saves on long-range shots. Anderlecht lost many duels and struggled to create any danger. Gent equalized from the penalty spot in the 37th minute after Coosemans partially (?) hit Paskotsi while clearing the ball. Visser's decision was rather questionable.
Anderlecht had faded after their strong start, but suddenly Angulo was back. The Ecuadorian cleverly got in front of his marker to head home a bouncing cross from Hazard.
After the break, Verschaeren and Özcan replaced De Cat and Kana (presumably due to minor injuries), leaving Anderlecht with an unheard-of duo at center back. Anderlecht immediately ceded the initiative to Gent after the break and relied on the counterattack. Gent threatened mainly from the left flank, but this resulted in few dangers. Anderlecht, however, couldn't get going at all and only briefly entered Gent's half around the 70th minute after the break.
Although Gent had hardly threatened after the break, the match turned completely in an instant. Gent leveled the score in the 82nd minute with a powerful shot from Araujo. Although the shot landed fairly centrally, Coosemans couldn't save it this time, partly due to the crowd in the penalty area. The home side's next attack found the net again. Gent broke through from the right, and Dean was ready at the far post to give the home side the lead.
Anderlecht suddenly had to get back into the game and responded with a dangerous shot from Degreef, but Roef was on top of the situation. Goore then shot over on a counter-attack. After Anderlecht gave it their all in the closing stages and Coosemans pushed forward, Gent broke free. Goore scored to make it 4-2 into an open goal. Anderlecht remains at the top of a pack of chasing clubs. Next weekend's home game against Dender is a must-win.
