Ace of the Red Devils, Paul Van Himst made 81 team appearances between 1960 and 1974, scoring 30 goals. The high point of his adventure in selection will be Euro 1972 and this 3rd place won against Hungary.
Protagonist with the Red Devils, he will also be 20 years later…as a coach. After proving his qualities as a coach on the Anderlecht bench (a league title, two UEFA Cup finals, one of which he won in 1983), Van Himst was placed at the head of the Red Devils.
“Polls” has the heavy task of succeeding Guy Thys after the failure to qualify for Euro 92′. Brilliantly qualified for the 1994 World Cup, he took a solid Belgian selection to the USA, composed among others ofEnzo Scifo, Michel Preud’homme, Marc Wilmots or Philippe Albert. After passing the group stage, the Belgian journey came to a cruel halt against Germany in the round of 16 (3-2).
After ending his collaboration with the Red Devils in 1996, Van Himst will no longer coach. A living legend of Sporting Anderlecht, Van Himst is regularly present in the aisles of Parc Astrid/Lotto Park to watch over the Mauve et Blanc, sometimes in the company of his great friend Eddy Merckx.
