© Marc Gysens
Fifteen months after he ended his career, Anthony Vanden Borre (34) gives another sign of life. VDB was a guest in a sports program on the French-language radio station Arabel and analyzed the failure of Anderlecht against Union. “Check whether Kompany and the board are on the same page.”
Jurgen Geril
He’s barely changed. Anthony Vanden Borre still looked like he used to. Hooded sweater, lush beard and always playful. In the radio studio, VDB accompanied by Bernard Allou, an ex-player of RWDM and PSG whom he bumped into at a tournament and who is now partly determining his future. A sporty comeback is no longer possible, but Vanden Borre is apparently open to other jobs in football. A snack as an analyst was therefore possible. “We’ll see what comes our way,” said Allou. “There is time.”
Together with four other studio guests, Vanden Borre focused on Anderlecht’s painful 3-1 defeat at Union. “When I see Anderlecht, I sometimes wonder where it is going,” said the ex-right back. “When Vincent Kompany arrived, his project was to launch young people, but today I don’t see those talents anymore. I do see borrowed players and then I wonder: why are you sacrificing a year to mercenaries who will soon be gone? Wouldn’t it be better to spend that year on young talents that you can mature? How many years has Anderlecht already lost? Wouldn’t they have spent those three or four years on young guys? The first year they have to get used to it, then they run better and after three years they are fantastic.”
There was a headwind from the radio panel. They noted that youth products such as Verschaeren and Amuzu are still involved at Anderlecht and that the Purple & White should achieve results. Nevertheless, Vanden Borre continued. “Vincent Kompany is the last big man at Anderlecht, but ask whether he and the management are always on the same page. Whether the plans are coherent. Does Kompany still have all the keys to bring Anderlecht back to the top with his project? His idea was a lot of youth surrounded by some toppers, like himself and Chadli in that first year. Unfortunately, those experienced men were not always fit then.”
© BELGA
The former enfant terrible would therefore approach it differently, but of course there is also the financial reality. Anderlecht had to sell top players like Jérémy Doku and Albert Sambi Lokonga for many millions in order to straighten out their finances. Vanden Borre then admitted that times have changed. “In my youth we never thought of a transfer. We were from Brussels and represented Brussels. Our family and our friends sat here. Even if Real Madrid knocked, you stayed here. Now the youth has social media and that makes them dream of more, of a bigger life. As a result, they opt for a transfer faster.”
Dubai?
The question is when Anderlecht will win another prize. The cup was lost and the Champions’ play-offs also started disastrously. “When I look at all those teams in Play-off 1, I see tension and nervousness everywhere”, concluded Vanden Borre. “The only team that plays football without complex is Union, and that is thanks to Felice Mazzu. With such an ambiance you can become a champion. Anderlecht must especially recover for the supporters who have been impatient for so long. That has to happen against Club Brugge in order not to slip further.”
Vanden Borre’s extra-sporty comeback is therefore a fact. When he broke his contract with Anderlecht in January 2021, he would start a youth academy in Dubai. According to our information, however, that project has not really taken off. VDB remains a fickle man.
