OTHER Last Monday the Fan Council — a delegation of supporters — met with club representatives: CEO Kenneth Bornauw, head of sports Tim Borguet and spokesman Mathias Declercq. Below is a concise translation of the full report published on the Fan Council's Facebook page, summarizing the main points discussed.
The club stressed it is looking for a head coach for the long term, not merely to see out the current season. Hiring a sporting director is seen as equally crucial but a longer-term decision; the club preferred to urgently appoint a coach who can restore confidence within the group and reshape the staff, while taking time to choose the right sports director.
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Continue reading Regarding reported negotiations with certain coaches — for example Fink — the club warned against taking all press reports at face value. Conversations often involve multiple parties and elements in the media version are partly correct and partly false. On how the current situation arose, the club reiterated its stated business model: recruit young players who can bring future financial value and may be sold sooner rather than later (examples cited include Simic and Angulo).
That model requires a balance between on-field performance and financial return. While outgoing transfers have improved the club's finances, the squad's sporting balance has suffered. The club accepts the inevitable “ups and downs” of a young core and said the summer will be used to correct that balance; in the meantime they have tried to add maturity and leadership with signings such as Diarra.
The Angulo transfer was explained in detail: there was a real risk in summer he would have left under unfavourable conditions, so after difficult negotiations a new contract was agreed and he then performed well, attracting interest. The winter bid was increased to an offer the club felt it could not refuse. Timing was delicate — the UK transfer window closed at 20:00 and tests in Paris had to be passed before activating Da Costa. The club chose a loan with an option to buy to limit financial risk; Da Costa provides wing options alongside Kanaté, Degreef, Huerta and Dao.
On Olivier Renard, the club said his profile had been thoroughly evaluated and, given the club's desired profile for future building, a change was needed. The timing — a week after the winter mercato — was chosen to create momentum for making the right long-term decisions and to allow the incoming hire to prepare the summer market. Behind the scenes work has been done on Academy, recruitment and performance, areas the club believes were neglected in previous years. Questions were raised about why action was not taken before the winter break.
The club argued that prior to the winter market there was no clear reason to intervene: after a strong October–November there was a dip in December but also many injuries, and objectives were still achievable. Kenneth Bornauw only started in mid-November, making it impractical to decide immediately on a sporting director ahead of the winter market. The new management wanted to give Olivier a fair chance; decisions on the coach and the sporting director were taken one week after the market closed.
The club also noted the organizational transition (new chairman, new CEO, changed board dynamics) required time to align visions and implement plans. On Hasi's extension last season, the club acknowledged it may have been a conservative choice aimed at stability — but the new management has been able to conduct a more thorough search for a successor who fits the club's philosophy and long-term profile.
The retirement of Jan Vertonghen and the difficulty of replacing a player of his calibre were discussed.The club pointed out that few players of that level are willing to play in the Belgian league and that finances limit their options; some heavy contracts weighing on the wage bill expire this summer and will free up space. The club is also reforming scouting and recruitment but said change takes time. European qualification remains an absolute objective.
On the winter mercato, the club stressed it is not the moment to rebuild an entire squad and is limited to players sitting on benches at bigger clubs. The additions — Diarra, Angély and Sikan — were brought in to add value and options: Moussa Ndiaye needed a fresh start, Luis Vazquez left on loan and Danylo Sikan was bought because competition for him was high; a purchase was the only way to secure a striker. The club believes Sikan needs time to adapt and highlighted his past involvement in decisive actions; Bertaccini is still viewed as a valuable profile.
Regarding squad balance built up under different sporting directors, the club says it is aligning shareholders, board, management and scouting around a single vision. The “Anderlecht DNA” will be translated into concrete, measurable KPIs covering recruitment, development and playing philosophy. The coach will need to fit that philosophy. This summer the club will focus more on adding maturity and complementary profiles; the current season prioritised young talents with resale value.
Financially the club's cash position has improved thanks to sales, reduced wage mass and upcoming contract expiries. On player departures and morale: the club confirmed Edward's (Still's) departure was his own decision. The group is low on confidence and the club is working to recharge the squad ahead of upcoming matches under Taravel's leadership. Bringing in experienced players such as Diarra and Sikan should help lift leadership within the group. Addressing the brain drain under the previous board, the club acknowledged vacancies and said it is running careful processes to fill them; names cannot be disclosed yet. On RSCA Futures, the use of players such as Rits, Foket and Ashimeru in the U23s in December was a deliberate move to generate interest from other clubs; in Ashimeru's case that succeeded.
The club defended the strategy of strengthening the Futures/U23s, noting that top-valued youngsters (De Cat, Cvetkovic, Goto, Angulo) all had U23 periods before stepping up — and that Anderlecht has the largest share of Academy players in 1B. On De Cat, the club wants to keep Nathan and intends to make a serious effort to extend his contract; if he enters the final contract year without renewal, any sufficient offer will be considered. Finally, the Fan Council urged a clear communications strategy to secure long-term supporter buy-in. The club committed to communicating the project's broad lines in due course, but would wait for the arrival of the new sporting director before rolling out full details; the Fan Council offered to help shape that communication.
The club also welcomed supporters' willingness to motivate the players at a training session but apologized for not informing the Fan Council in time: after consulting the coach, Taravel preferred not to hold such an initiative the day before the cup match; the club remains open to organising it on another date. The Fan Council thanked the club for the open conversation.
