Marked for Benoît Bruggeman
From our football correspondent
Steady
Transfer targets21 Jun 2027
Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Club Brugge have kept their man, and RWDM go back to a list with one name crossed off it.
Market21 Jun 2027
RWDM may not be able to give Valentín Adamo what he wants
It is the most legitimate ambition in the sport and the hardest for most clubs to satisfy. Valentín Adamo wants continental football; whether RWDM can provide it is a question about the next two seasons, not about him.
Squad21 Jun 2027
A falling-out at RWDM
Yacine Chaib and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Transfer targets21 Jun 2027
A loan enquiry to Toulouse FC: cover, or a look at somebody the club cannot afford to buy yet. Either way the answer will come back inside the week.
Market21 Jun 2027
Both sides expect a conversation in the coming days. RWDM will name a price, and everything after that is arithmetic.
Squad21 Jun 2027
He is doing things every Saturday that nobody around him can answer. It is flattering for a season and a problem after that, and RWDM know which stage they are at.
Squad21 Jun 2027
A row about effort at RWDM
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Erick Rossi was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Squad21 Jun 2027
Every shape has positions in it and this one does not have his. RWDM will either change the shape, change his job, or change his club, and he is waiting to hear which.
The dugout21 Jun 2027
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
Back issues
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Squad7 Jun 2027
81 days out for Lahcen Gourbi after a fracture
A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. RFC Liege will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
Boardroom7 Jun 2027
The board have said in public what they had been saying in private. Results between now and the next meeting decide it, and everybody in the building knows the arithmetic.
Market7 Jun 2027
KV Kortrijk come back empty-handed
The bid was some way short and RFC Liege did not need long over it. Nobody in the game reads a first refusal as the end of anything.
Market7 Jun 2027
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what RFC Liege can pretend not to have heard.
Squad7 Jun 2027
Fadel Gobitaka was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Transfer targets7 Jun 2027
Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Club Brugge have kept their man, and RFC Liege go back to a list with one name crossed off it.
Market7 Jun 2027
The phone has started ringing about Benoît Bruggeman again, and this time the name on the line is RWDM. RFC Liege are listening politely and promising nothing.
Market7 Jun 2027
“They were honest with me, and I would rather know.” Simon Paulet has been informed he is not in the manager's thinking at RFC Liege.
Squad7 Jun 2027
25 days, the medical staff say, and medical staff are optimists by profession. The team sheet will look wrong without him.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Boardroom7 Jun 2027
Promotion for RWDM
Mathematically certain, and nobody in this town is going to bed early. Whatever else happened this season, it finishes a division above where it started.
Market7 Jun 2027
The last thing about a transfer that is still about the player is his signature on his own terms, and it is there. RWDM have lost him in all but the paperwork.
Market7 Jun 2027
“I have given everything here and I need a new challenge.” The request is formal, and the relationship will never be quite the same again.
Transfer targets7 Jun 2027
The approach was made and the answer came back in a sentence. There is no number on the table because there was no number that would have been enough.
Squad7 Jun 2027
A falling-out at RWDM
Mats Lemmens and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad7 Jun 2027
A row about effort at RWDM
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Ali Loune was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Squad7 Jun 2027
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Fréderic Soelle Soelle and RWDM agree another 5 years.
Market7 Jun 2027
“They were honest with me, and I would rather know.” Mats Lemmens has been informed he is not in the manager's thinking at RWDM.
The dugout7 Jun 2027
No hiding place for Ali Loune
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Ali Loune, and the manager let it.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Squad17 May 2027
30 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. RFC Liege lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.
Squad17 May 2027
Lahcen Gourbi breaks a bone — 105 days out
Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 105 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.
Market17 May 2027
“I have given everything here and I need a new challenge.” The request is formal, and the relationship will never be quite the same again.
Squad17 May 2027
Words exchanged at RFC Liege
Jemerson and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Squad17 May 2027
A row about effort at RFC Liege
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Alexis de Sart was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
The dugout17 May 2027
The manager has not finished forgetting Tuur Dierckx's mistake
Publicly it is behind everybody. It is not behind the man who picks the team, and the only place that shows is a team sheet. He will get another chance; he will get it in a match that matters less.
The dugout17 May 2027
Jordi Belin gets it from the manager
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
The dugout17 May 2027
Tuur Dierckx asks for a word with the manager
“I would rather say it to his face than read about it.” The meeting was requested by the player, which tells you most of what you need to know.
The dugout17 May 2027
Abian Arslan gets picked when it counts
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Abian Arslan is on it.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Squad19 Apr 2027
A knee injury of the worst kind for Arne Cassaert
63 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. RFC Liege lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
Market19 Apr 2027
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at RFC Liege, and it is not being withdrawn.
Squad19 Apr 2027
Fadel Gobitaka and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad19 Apr 2027
Words at RFC Liege training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Jemerson is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Squad19 Apr 2027
5 new faces, and RFC Liege are still learning each other
A squad rebuilt inside one window pays for it in a currency nobody budgets for. The football is not worse than the sum of the players; it is worse than the sum of the players who have played together before.
The dugout19 Apr 2027
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Jordan Bustin, and the manager let it.
The dugout19 Apr 2027
The manager has not finished forgetting Tuur Dierckx's mistake
Publicly it is behind everybody. It is not behind the man who picks the team, and the only place that shows is a team sheet. He will get another chance; he will get it in a match that matters less.
The dugout19 Apr 2027
Jemerson knocks on the manager's door
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at RFC Liege, and both men came out saying it was fine.
The dugout19 Apr 2027
Abian Arslan gets picked when it counts
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Abian Arslan is on it.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Match3 Apr 2027
Some goals win a match and some take one off somebody else. Filip Krastev scored in the 86th minute, RFC Liege had already begun thinking about the journey home, and Lommel took the lot.
The dugout5 Apr 2027
Benoît Bruggeman: that is not what I was promised
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” Lommel have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Squad5 Apr 2027
Form comes and goes; this has not gone. Álvaro Santos is 22, and the version of him training now would not have got into the side he was in a year ago.
Squad5 Apr 2027
Words at Lommel training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Taiga Hata is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Squad5 Apr 2027
A falling-out at Lommel
Jason van Duiven and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Match3 Apr 2027
Three points for Lommel, 1‑0 the final word against RFC Liege in a contest settled by the finer margins.
Player ratings5 Apr 2027
Successful dribbles: 18. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
Squad5 Apr 2027
Time is catching up with Angel Romero
Everybody at Lommel saw it before anybody said it, which is how this always goes. At 36 the decline is real and measurable — 3 points — and the only question left is how the club handles somebody it owes a great deal to.
The dugout5 Apr 2027
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Market29 Mar 2027
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Lommel can pretend not to have heard.
The dugout29 Mar 2027
Joey Pelupessy: that is not what I was promised
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” Lommel have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Squad29 Mar 2027
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Lommel this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad29 Mar 2027
The step up is real for Henry Oware
At 23 he is doing things this season that he could not do last season, and doing them every week. Form comes and goes; this has stayed long enough to be called something else.
Squad29 Mar 2027
Taiga Hata falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Squad29 Mar 2027
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Juho Talvitie and Lommel agree another 5 years.
The dugout29 Mar 2027
Niels Nieki gets it from the manager
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
The dugout29 Mar 2027
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Nicolas Rommens is on it.
The dugout29 Mar 2027
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Lommel, and both men came out saying it was fine.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Match30 Jan 2027
3‑0, and Jason van Duiven took the headlines on an afternoon when everything Lommel tried came off. Days like this are retold all winter.
Player ratings1 Feb 2027
A brace, and Jason van Duiven takes the afternoon — 9.05
There is a particular kind of quiet from an away end watching one man score twice. Jason van Duiven provided it, and the 9.05 beside his name is if anything generous to everybody else.
Market1 Feb 2027
“It was not right for me. I am not going to explain why to anybody except the people I owe an explanation to.” A deal agreed between two clubs, and a player who declined to be part of it.
Player ratings1 Feb 2027
No sign of nerves from Juho Talvitie at 21 — 7.62
The hardest thing about being 21 in a senior side is that nobody makes allowances. Juho Talvitie did not need any: 7.62, and he looked the most comfortable man on the pitch.
Match30 Jan 2027
Lommel make home a hard place to visit
12 without defeat on their own grass. The pitch has not changed; the crowd has — louder earlier, and quicker to sense when the opposition would rather be somewhere else.
Boardroom1 Feb 2027
Window shuts: 3 in, 2 out at Lommel
The deadline has passed and the squad is the squad. 3 arrived, 2 left, and everything else printed about this club last month was a rumour that stayed one.
Market1 Feb 2027
Lommel say no — this time
The offer from Rapperswil-Jona for Baptiste Kilala was heard out and sent back the same day. First bids are rarely meant to succeed; they are meant to find out how loudly the door closes.
Transfer targets1 Feb 2027
Everything agreed with RFC Liege, everything agreed with the player; a doctor is the only person left to persuade. The photograph is a day or two away.
Squad1 Feb 2027
He is 21, he is averaging 7.15, and older professionals have started passing to him in the difficult minutes. That last part is the real scouting report.
In brief
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Squad
Tempers go at Lommel
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Squad
Words at Lommel training over how hard people work
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Transfer targets
Door shut on Cenk Özkacar
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Market1 Feb 2027
“I have given everything here and I need a new challenge.” The request is formal, and the relationship will never be quite the same again.
Market1 Feb 2027
The last thing about a transfer that is still about the player is his signature on his own terms, and it is there. RFC Liege have lost him in all but the paperwork.
Boardroom1 Feb 2027
RFC Liege close the window on a squad of their own making
4 in and 3 out, and no more changes for months. The manager has what he has, the supporters have their opinion of it, and the table will have the last word.
Match30 Jan 2027
No end in sight to RFC Liege's wait for a win
4 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at RFC Liege has to find a result from somewhere.
Squad1 Feb 2027
Khalid Hachadi was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Squad1 Feb 2027
Alexis de Sart falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Match30 Jan 2027
3 matches without a goal for RFC Liege
The chances are being made and something is happening between the making and the finishing. 3 matches now, and the anxiety in the ground arrives a little earlier every week.
Transfer targets1 Feb 2027
RFC Liege asked and RWDM said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
Match30 Jan 2027
Waasland-Beveren left with the points after a 0‑2 defeat that will take some explaining on the terraces.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Market25 Jan 2027
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at RFC Liege, and it is not being withdrawn.
Market25 Jan 2027
Westerlo come back empty-handed
The bid was some way short and RFC Liege did not need long over it. Nobody in the game reads a first refusal as the end of anything.
Market25 Jan 2027
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at RFC Liege is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Market25 Jan 2027
The fee is $220.0K, the contract is signed, and the argument about whether he is worth it can begin. KV Kortrijk drove a hard bargain; time will say who won it.
Squad25 Jan 2027
Arne Cassaert and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
The terraces25 Jan 2027
The town asked, and RFC Liege paid $220.0K
Ebbe De Vlaeminck was the name on every phone-in, and the club has gone and signed him for $220.0K. For one week the board can do no wrong, which is a week most boards never get.
Squad25 Jan 2027
Words at RFC Liege training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Jemerson is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Match23 Jan 2027
Beaten 0‑2, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.
The dugout25 Jan 2027
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Pierre-Yves Ngawa, and the manager let it.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Market11 Jan 2027
“I have given everything here and I need a new challenge.” The request is formal, and the relationship will never be quite the same again.
Squad11 Jan 2027
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the whole of the defence. 6 saves, several of them the kind nobody expects to see made, and ten outfield players who owe him a drink.
Market11 Jan 2027
Westerlo come back empty-handed
The bid was some way short and RFC Liege did not need long over it. Nobody in the game reads a first refusal as the end of anything.
Transfer targets11 Jan 2027
A medical, a signature, a shirt held up in front of a sponsor’s board. RFC Liege have done the hard part with KV Kortrijk, and the part that remains is the part supporters actually see.
Squad11 Jan 2027
Jemerson and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad11 Jan 2027
Alexis de Sart falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Transfer targets11 Jan 2027
The approach was made and the answer came back in a sentence. There is no number on the table because there was no number that would have been enough.
Match9 Jan 2027
Seraing left with the points after a 1‑2 defeat that will take some explaining on the terraces.
The dugout11 Jan 2027
No hiding place for Jemerson
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Jemerson, and the manager let it.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Market4 Jan 2027
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what RFC Liege can pretend not to have heard.
The dugout4 Jan 2027
“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” RFC Liege may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.
Player ratings4 Jan 2027
Ndoh Wamfor, 21, plays like he has been here for years — 7.77
A mark of 7.77 means one thing beside a twenty-nine-year-old's name and something else entirely beside a 21-year-old's. Nobody at the ground needed telling which this was.
Match2 Jan 2027
RFC Liege cannot stop winning
3 wins on the spin now, and the question has changed from whether the run ends to who ends it. Confidence like this cannot be bought; it has to be earned exactly this way.
Boardroom4 Jan 2027
He will play here until the summer and then walk out of the door for free, having already signed elsewhere. Supporters will manage the first part of that sentence; it is the second they will struggle with.
Squad4 Jan 2027
“The easiest signature of my career.” Jemerson and RFC Liege agree another 2 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
Squad4 Jan 2027
“I have tried. I have really tried, and every day I wake up in the wrong place.” Nobody at RFC Liege can coach that out of a man, and nobody there is pretending to.
Squad4 Jan 2027
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at RFC Liege this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad4 Jan 2027
Jemerson falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Squad14 Dec 2026
There were 8 saves in it, and at least three that had no business being saves at all. The ten outfield players owe him a drink and they know it.
The dugout14 Dec 2026
“I was told what my role would be, and I signed on that basis. It has not happened.” A grievance with a date attached is the hardest kind to settle.
Market14 Dec 2026
“I have given everything here and I need a new challenge.” The request is formal, and the relationship will never be quite the same again.
Player ratings14 Dec 2026
Eric N'Jo pops up at the right end — 7.45
7.45, 1 on the scoresheet, and the specific comedy of a back-four player celebrating like somebody who does this every week. He does not, and that is exactly why the ground reacted the way it did.
Squad14 Dec 2026
Arne Cassaert was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Match12 Dec 2026
Eric N'Jo scored, and precious little else went right: 1‑2 to Francs Borains, and a quiet walk to the dressing room.
The dugout14 Dec 2026
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Kylian Hazard, and the manager let it.
Squad14 Dec 2026
200 times in these colours, in all weathers and under four or five different managers. That kind of service is quietly disappearing from the game.
Squad14 Dec 2026
Tuur Dierckx falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad16 Nov 2026
Fadel Gobitaka was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Squad16 Nov 2026
A row about effort at RFC Liege
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Pierre-Yves Ngawa was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
The dugout16 Nov 2026
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Khalid Hachadi, and the manager let it.
Market16 Nov 2026
Lucca Lucker is free to find somewhere else
“I was told straight, and I would rather have it straight.” The manager at RFC Liege has been clear about where Lucca Lucker stands, which is more than many ever get.
The dugout16 Nov 2026
A promise honoured at RFC Liege
Something was said to Ndoh Wamfor and then it happened. In this industry that passes for remarkable, and the dressing room noticed faster than any supporter could.
The dugout16 Nov 2026
Lahcen Gourbi knocks on the manager's door
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at RFC Liege, and both men came out saying it was fine.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Market2 Nov 2026
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what RFC Liege can pretend not to have heard.
Squad2 Nov 2026
Words exchanged at RFC Liege
Khalid Hachadi and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Squad2 Nov 2026
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Eric N'Jo and RFC Liege agree another 4 years.
Match31 Oct 2026
KV Kortrijk left with the points after a 1‑3 defeat that will take some explaining on the terraces.
Squad2 Nov 2026
Arne Cassaert falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
The dugout2 Nov 2026
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
Boardroom2 Nov 2026
122% of the income goes out in wages at RFC Liege
Every club in football pays most of what it earns to its players. Paying nearly all of it is a different arrangement, and it has ended the same way every time somebody has tried it.
Market2 Nov 2026
“There is a gap, and pretending there is not helps nobody.” Neither side has moved, and the calendar is working for exactly one of them.
The dugout2 Nov 2026
“The supporters are entitled to be angry. So am I. We will put it right.” 1‑3, a manager saying the necessary things, and a dressing room that heard a different version of them.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Market5 Oct 2026
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at RFC Liege, and it is not being withdrawn.
Squad5 Oct 2026
Fadel Gobitaka and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad5 Oct 2026
A row about effort at RFC Liege
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Pierre-Yves Ngawa was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Match3 Oct 2026
Ask anyone on the way out what separated the sides and you will get one name: Kays Ruiz-Atil. 2‑1 against Beerschot, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.
Boardroom5 Oct 2026
Wages eat 149% of everything RFC Liege earn
There is a figure at which a wage bill stops being ambitious and becomes the reason nothing else is possible, and this club has reached it. Nothing is left over for a transfer, a stand or a rainy afternoon.
The dugout5 Oct 2026
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
Player ratings5 Oct 2026
Kays Ruiz-Atil was on a different afternoon to everybody else
8.02. There are performances a supporter describes to somebody who was not there and cannot quite convey; this was one, and the number does not help either.
The dugout5 Oct 2026
Somebody else is better right now than Jordi Belin
The team sheet says it in public every week until it changes. The only version of being dropped a footballer cannot argue with, and the one he takes hardest.
The dugout5 Oct 2026
“The players deserve the credit. My job was easy today.” It was not, and everybody in the room knew it; after 2‑1, Laurent Openda could afford to be generous.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Transfer targets7 Sep 2026
The clubs have shaken hands with Eupen; the player has not yet. Personal terms are next, and personal terms are where more deals die than anybody prints.
Market7 Sep 2026
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at RFC Liege, and it is not being withdrawn.
Transfer targets7 Sep 2026
Terms were offered and declined. Whether it was the wages, the role or the town, nobody at Eupen is saying, and nobody at RFC Liege is enjoying the guessing.
Boardroom7 Sep 2026
Window shuts: 17 in, 13 out at RFC Liege
The deadline has passed and the squad is the squad. 17 arrived, 13 left, and everything else printed about this club last month was a rumour that stayed one.
Market7 Sep 2026
The offer was not close and it was refused without much discussion. Whether the second one is refused as quickly is another matter.
Boardroom7 Sep 2026
The number the board signed off was not enough. It has been asked again and raised its own offer to $62.1K — a club that wants Victor Tihon enough to be asked twice.
Squad7 Sep 2026
Words exchanged at RFC Liege
Khalid Hachadi and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Squad7 Sep 2026
Words at RFC Liege training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Pierre-Yves Ngawa is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
The dugout7 Sep 2026
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Kylian Hazard, and the manager let it.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad24 Aug 2026
There were 7 saves in it, and at least three that had no business being saves at all. The ten outfield players owe him a drink and they know it.
Market24 Aug 2026
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what RFC Liege can pretend not to have heard.
Market24 Aug 2026
The offer was not close and it was refused without much discussion. Whether the second one is refused as quickly is another matter.
Boardroom24 Aug 2026
The number the board signed off was not enough. It has been asked again and raised its own offer to $60.9K — a club that wants Aaron Murenzi enough to be asked twice.
Transfer targets24 Aug 2026
Everything agreed with Westerlo, everything agreed with the player; a doctor is the only person left to persuade. The photograph is a day or two away.
Match22 Aug 2026
No end in sight to RFC Liege's wait for a win
4 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at RFC Liege has to find a result from somewhere.
Squad24 Aug 2026
Arne Cassaert was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Transfer targets24 Aug 2026
$57.0K on the table at Racing Genk. The manager wanted him, the board agreed a number, and the only voices still to be heard are the ones at the other club.
Squad24 Aug 2026
Pierre-Yves Ngawa falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Squad3 Aug 2026
Khalid Hachadi gets the move he always wanted
Footballers are asked about their boyhood club so often that nobody listens to the answer. Khalid Hachadi has just signed for RFC Liege, and for once the answer mattered.
Squad3 Aug 2026
10 seasons and 288 appearances, all of them here. Careers like this are not designed; they happen to a certain kind of man at a certain kind of club, and this town has one.
Market3 Aug 2026
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at RFC Liege, and it is not being withdrawn.
Market3 Aug 2026
Emmen come back empty-handed
The bid was some way short and RFC Liege did not need long over it. Nobody in the game reads a first refusal as the end of anything.
Squad3 Aug 2026
“The easiest signature of my career.” Pierre-Yves Ngawa and RFC Liege agree another 2 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
Squad3 Aug 2026
Jordi Belin and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Match1 Aug 2026
Jong Genk left with the points after a 0‑2 defeat that will take some explaining on the terraces.
The dugout3 Aug 2026
Jordi Belin gets it from the manager
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
Player ratings3 Aug 2026
Successful dribbles: 18. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.