With just a half-dozen Pro League games left in the regular season, the race for a top four finish is heating up for our American boys. There is still all to play for however.
Standard Liege 2 – 0 Westerlo
With both Bryan Reynolds‘ Westerlo and Marlon Fossey‘s Standard Liege battling for a coveted top four finish, it was the team from Wallonia that picked up the points to push themselves up the standings. Fossey put in an 88 minute shift at the Schlessin, while Reynolds went the distance but headed home with no points at the end of the night. Griffin Yow was not on the team sheet.
Aron Dønnum struck after 37 minutes to give les Rouches the lead at the half and William Balikwisha struck in the second half to put the game to bed. Westerlo had no answer to either goal.
After just six minutes Fossey had a half decent shot from inside the box and was disappointed to see his shot blocked and sent out of harm’s way. And yes, it was blocked by his fellow American. Fossey could have picked up an assist seven minutes later but once he picked out Philip Zinckernagel inside the box, he watched his Danish team mate send it over the cross bar and into the cheap seats.
For the Norwegian it was his third goal of the season since coming to Belgium from Valerenga last summer. Noah Ohio set him up and Dønnum’s left footed shot from the left side of the six yard box flew past a flapping Nick Gillekens between the sticks.
Reynolds looked to collect an assist as well but his sweet through ball to Kyan Vaesen on the hour mark found the player but the Belgian front man was flagged offside.
Overall the hosts registered 17 shots, although only for were on target. One of the two was in the second half and was again assisted by Ohio. This time it was a shot from close range that the Belgian tucked into the bottom far corner. This was the Brussels-born midfielders fifth of the season.
With Club Brugge losing to relegation threatened Oostende on Friday night, Standard are now only one point behind the fourth place team. They’ll hope to take over that spot when they head to Brugge over the weekend to take on the defending Belgian champions.
As for Westerlo, their hopes are still alive and pick up three points when they host Kortrijk on Saturday evening.
Sint-Truiden 2 – 2 Genk
The league leaders lost their lead twice and had to settle for a point from their derby as the Canaries fought back to earn a share of the points. Mbwana Samatta’s picked up a brace, while the hosts saw Mory Konate and Gianni Bruno find the back of the net. Mark McKenzie went the distance again for the Smurfs at the Stayen.
After Genk won a free kick in the attacking half of the field, Samatta headed the ball to his American colleague and McKenzie got off a fine shot in the middle of the box but saw it saved by the Canaries keeper.
In the 23rd minute a cross from Gerardo Arteaga was headed into the bottom right hand corner by the Tanzanian for his third goal of the season and the lead. But it wasn’t enough to send the Genk boys into the locker room at the half with a lead because in the 45th minute, coming from a free kick, Konate tucked the ball home from close range.
Just past the hour mark Samatta stuck again, this time from just to the right of the six yard box. In this game where the teams shared possession, 50-50, it was the Belgian Bruno’s 77th minute strike that knotted things up and in the end claimed a point for his side.
Still eight points better off than second place USG, McKenzie and company will have their hands full when that Brussels-based team comes to visit on Sunday afternoon.
Notes
Good news for Royal Antwerp as they crushed a Jorge Hernandez-less Mechelen at Bosuil Stadium on Sunday afternoon, 5-0. More good news is that Sam Vines has been spotted back in training and will hope to return to the field of play this coming weekend when the third place team travels to take on last place Seraing.
Hernandez has been missing from both the first team and the reserves as of late, so he will most likely not make the team sheet when the Kakkers host Sint-Truiden.
