BEING BELGIAN: Dass (team) ist wahnsinn!

When the Austrians rolled into Brussels to take on the Red Devils last Tuesday it did not evoke quite the same sense of trepidation amongst the local population as when the Germans arrived earlier this season. It wasn’t always thus. As everybody surely knows, the Austrians have been here before and have not always been so quick to head home. Following some kerfuffle or other the Treaty of Utrecht (signed in 1713) ceded the Spanish (or Southern) Netherlands to Austria. Although the Austrians had relatively little interest in their Netherlands they stayed for about 80 years until in 1794 the region was overrun by France and the Austrians pranced off back to Vienna with their Opera glasses (perhaps it was because they couldn’t see the stage very well that, on 25 August 1830, after a performance at the Brussels opera, a riot erupted, quickly followed by uprisings elsewhere in the country, and the Belgian Revolution led to the country’s independence. Perhaps!). But back to last Tuesday evening and the Red Devils’ most heroic battle in years. 4-4 it ended, a game that evoked memories of the football of yore. Over the top, appeared the tactical instructions from both coaches. Belgium went one up early doors, through Jelle Vossen, the sharp shooting Genk centre forward, but Austrian schemer, Franz Schiemer, and marksman, Marko Arnautović, each struck to leave Belgium adrift at the break. Shortly into the second period sober haired Marouane Fellaini headed Belgium level but Schiemer put Austria back ahead before team mate Scharner got himself needlessly sent off, leaving Das Team (I kid you not, the imagination of these Austrians is endless) a man down with a quarter of the game to go. It took until 5 minutes to the end for Belgium to press home its numerical advantage, Genk striker Marvin Ogunjimi turning the ball home after good work from Eden Hazard. Pandemonium, a bit like the bar at the U2 gig at the same stadium nights earlier. In the 90th minute, St Petersburg player Nicolas Lombaerts nodded the 4-3 into the onion sack. Delirium, unlike anything seen since the 4-3 against the USSR in Mexico 86. Until German born, Stuttgart player, Martin Harnik equalised in the 93^rd minute. Depression, comparable to that of fans of any team other than Genk when they look at the current Jupiler league table. 

Results below, table here:

Zulte Waregem 2 – 3 Club Brugge

Westerlo 1 – 1 KV Mechelen

Eupen 6 – 0 Sint Truiden

Charleroi 1 – 2 Lokeren

AA Gent 2 – 0 Kortrijk

Germinal Beerschot 1 – 1 Lierse

Racing Genk 4 - 2 Standard Liege

Cercle Brugge 1 - 0 Anderlecht