A playing time that the former Bruges defender has already exceeded after two days, having played the entirety of the matches in Genk and against Bruges. “I am very happy to have been able to play two 90 minutes, with positive results to boot,” the defender rejoices.
Standard-Bruges: These Rouches deserve the gold medal for bravery
After a timid start on the banks of the Meuse, the player who signed a four-and-a-half-year contract in January 2023, intends to become an undisputed starter in Ivan Leko’s defense. The 22-year-old had already shown the path he wanted to follow during the preparation and he intends to continue on this path. “I had a difficult year last season, both physically and mentally. But I also worked a lot during this period. During the summer preparation, I received a lot of playing time and I became a starter. It’s a big improvement compared to last season and I intend to continue on this path.”
A complementary defensive trio
Although he played all the preparation matches alongside Bosko Sutalo during the preparation, Ibe Hautekiet has been playing in a defensive trio since the arrival of David Bates. A back three that found each other straight away. “It works really well between the three of us,” confirms Hautekiet. Bosko and I have played together a lot, we know what we have to do, while David brings all his experience.”
guillement
I had a difficult year last season, both physically and mentally.
The presence of the former Malinois also frees Hautekiet from a certain pressure. “David takes on the role of leader, he talks to me a lot on the field or in training. Besides, we eat side by side during the week, and we take the opportunity to talk about football and other things. It is very important to strengthen our bonds on and off the field.”
And it works rather well since after two days of the championship, Standard is the only team not to have conceded. Two clean sheets in a row which will give the group confidence. “We want to keep the zero in each match. It’s incredible to have done it against Genk and Bruges, we will try to reproduce that against Mechelen on Friday.”
David Bates already in Standard defense boss mode: “He met expectations”
Beware of overconfidence
When the calendar for the 2024-2025 season came out, no one imagined that Standard would sign a four out of six by having to deal with Genk and Bruges to start its championship. Even less so given the club’s extra-sporting circumstances. And yet, with self-denial, work, courage and solidarity, the Rouches achieved a first feat. “No one believed we were capable of it but internally, we always believed that it was possible. We saw during the sessions that our defense was already strong and when we saw that it also worked during the preparation matches against teams like Norwich or Rangers, it strengthened our confidence. We are very happy to see that it also works in the championship.”
If confidence is present in the team’s ranks, beware however of overconfidence. Especially since after signing a 4 out of 6 against two big names in the championship, Standard is tackling a program more within its reach. There will be Mechelen on Friday before Kortrijk and Beerschot during the next two days. Teams that we must not look down on, just to avoid falling from a great height, which Standard has accustomed us to too often in recent seasons. “It’s true that it was often the case last year. I don’t know if we will behave differently this year but we will discuss that a lot to try to win against these teams within our reach”, confides Hautekiet while Leko advocates caution. “We must remain humble. Physically, tactically, technically, we still have to improve to be better.”
2024-08-08 07:52:00
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