- 84′ – Cont. Hannes Van der Bruggen by Charles Vanhoutte
- 78′ – Verv. Marlos Moreno door Dylan Mbayo
- 78′ – Cont. Abdelkahar Kadri by Michiel Jonckheere
- 71 ‘- Verv. Kevin Denkey by Thibo Somers
- 68′ – Yellow – Kevin Denkey
- 66′ – Goal – Kevin Denkey (2 – 0)
- 63′ – Cont. Vitinho by Robbe Decostere
- 62 ‘- Verv. Ante Palaversa by Mohamed Badamosi
- 50′ – Goal penalty kick – Dino Hotic (1 – 0)
- 49′ – Yellow – Kevin Vandendriessche
Jupiler Pro League
Cercle Brugge does not have to bury the hope for the play-offs yet. It started again against Kortrijk with the victory (2-0) thanks to goals from Hotic and Denkey and keeps the top 8 in sight. Kortrijk slides further away in the position after a 0 on 9.
Cercle Brugge – KV Kortrijk in a nutshell:
- Key moment: Shortly after the break, Cercle Brugge gets what it deserved in the first half, Hotic gives the home team the lead from the penalty spot.
- Man of the match: Dino Hotic not only provided the opening goal, but was also ubiquitous in midfield. The skilled Bosnian divided the game like a true number 10.
- Remarkable: For the first time since November 2013, Cercle can beat KV Kortrijk at home. Green-black thus puts an end to a series of 8 duels without a home win against Kortrijk (6 defeats, 2 draws).
- Plan: Cercle continues to play for a place in the top eight, although it promises to be a tough job. The people of Bruges will take on Charleroi, Ghent and Antwerp in the last straight line.
Cercle only converts dominance into goals after the break
Cercle Brugge grabbed KV Kortrijk by the throat from minute 1 and only let go after half an hour. By then Cercle should have been in the lead for a long time, but strikers Matondo and Denkey couldn’t find their way to goal. Although Matondo was very close: he hit the post.
Kortrijk was only able to restore the balance in the match at the end of the first half. Palaversa made the only real attempt by the visitors before half-time, his shot flew wide.
After the break, Cercle pushed the accelerator pedal again and that now yielded results. After an error by Vandendriessche, the ball went on the spot. The penalty was right up Hotic’s hand, who didn’t give Ilic a chance from eleven meters.
Fifteen minutes later, Denkey delivered the coup de grace. The Togolese received the ball from Radovanovic and blasted the 2-0 into the ropes. Kortrijk hardly struggled after that and can now definitively write the play-offs on its stomach. Cercle may continue to dream.
Sainsbury: “We were not at the appointment”
- Trent Sainsbury (KV Kortrijk): “Cercle put very good pressure on us, which made it difficult for us to get the ball away. And if we did succeed, the creativity or quality to do something with it was lacking. But all the credit for Cercle, that deserved to win and there was also worked hard for it.”
“For us, the season is actually over, and that may have played a part in the back of our minds, although we remain professionals of course. We are also paid for this. But it seemed that we were not at the appointment tonight.”
- Dino Hotic (Cercle Brugge): “It was another good game from our side. We work well together as a team and try to put pressure all the time, to impose our game on the opponent. So that gives us three points.”
“Now everything is possible with a view to the play-offs. We are a strong team that can hurt any opponent in Belgium. Now we have to recover well, and then we will be back next week against Charleroi.”
