Belgian football league preview - 2008-09 season - Genk to Tubize

Genk (full name KRC Genk)

City: Genk (Flemish/French)

Last season: 10th

Coach: Ronny Vangeuneugden

Stadium: Cristal Arena - capacity 23624

Colours: Blue and White

Champions: 2

Cup Wins: 2

Genk are the result of the 1988 merger between two local teams, Waterschei and Winterslag, who had themselves enjoyed some success in Europe. Waterschei played one semi-final of the CWC in 1984 and Winterslag once famously beat Arsenal in the UEFA Cup. After a difficult start everything came into shape and the club from the former mining region of Limburg in the Northeast became a new force in Belgian football, winning 2 championship titles. Their stadium is always sold-out and they can count on a big following away from home. After challenging for the title the season before last, 2007-2008 was a letdown, with the club finishing in mid-table and successful coach Hugo Broos (who led both Anderlecht and FC Bruges to national titles) was sacked as a result. Nobody expect much of them this season and they could surprise a few if they can regain some confidence.

Mouscron (full name Royal Excelsior Mouscron)

City: Mouscron (French) / Moeskroen (Flemish)

Last season: 11th

Coach: Enzo Scifo

Stadium: Le Canonnier - capacity 10800

Colours: Red and White

Nickname: l'Excel

This club from a city on the French border in the far western corner of Hainaut province came up in 1997 and has remained in D1 ever since. In their first season they challenged for the title and were very much the new darlings of the French-speaking media, creating interest in football in this forgotten area. Since then the club has, despite a couple of European adventures, mostly played in mid-table and the crowds have also gone down. Former Belgian legend Enzo Scifo took over last year after a few unsuccessful spells at Charleroi and Tubize and once more they should enjoy a worry-free season if they can bag the points at home as usual.

Lokeren (full name KSC Lokeren Oost-Vlaanderen)

City: Lokeren (Flemish/French)

Last season: 12th

Coach: Georges Leekens

Stadium: Daknam - capacity 9271

Colours: Black, White and Yellow

This club has been a nearly permanent feature in D1 since their promotion in the early 70s, absent only one season. Lokeren (a mid-sized city from the Waasland region between Antwerp and Ghent) enjoyed success in the late 70s and early 80s when they challenged for the title and qualified a few times for Europe. Back then, they had some famous players in their ranks, like Polish stars Lubanski and Lato and Danish forward Preben Elkjaer Larsen, among others. Since then they seem happy to linger in mid-table most of the time. In recent years, their playing squad was almost entirely composed of foreign players, with an emphasis on imports from Africa, Iceland and the former Yugoslavia. In order to recapture some of their past glory the club lured flamboyant coach Georges Leekens last season away from neighbours Ghent. Unfortunately, it didn't bring the desired results and the club once more finished in mid-table obscurity with a record number of drawn games. Expect the same this season.

KV Mechelen (full name Yellow Red KV Mechelen)

City: Mechelen (Flemish) / Malines (French)

Last season: 13th

Coach: Peter Maes

Stadium: Veolia "Achter de Kazerne" ("Behind the Barracks")

Colours: Yellow and Red

Nickname: Maliwa (from the old French appelation "Malinois") - capacity 14145

Champions: 4

Cup Wins: 1

Cup Winners Cup Wins: 1 (1988)

This club is a phoenix back from the ashes. In 2003, they were certain to follow the path of my club, RWDM, and disappear. But fans didn't want this to happen and, under the guidance of some well-known local TV personalities who were fans of this famous name, they raised the money necessary to pay off their debts.

The club, then playing in D3 less than two decades after being the last Belgian club to win a European competition in 1988, slowly recovered and were back in D1 in 2007. Backed by a passionate crowd in their small stadium, the team, who was almost the same as in their promotion season, overcame all odds and stayed up without too many problems. This is very much a club on the up again and they should once more be safe this season, largely thanks to their fabulous fans.

Roeselare (full name KSV Roeselare)

City: Roeselare (Flemish) / Roulers (French)

Last season: 14th

Coach: Dirk Geeraerd

Stadium: Schiervelde - capacity 9036

Colours: Black and White

One of the many unfashionable Belgian clubs, Roeselare (a town in West Vlaanderen) came up for the first time in 2005 and have yet to be threatened by relegation. Roeselare are something of an anomaly in Belgium, as most of their players are local lads and very few are foreigners. Last season they were heavily criticized because of their defensive approach.

For this campaign, newly appointed club manager Wim Deconinck (a former international goalie) nearly changed their entire playing squad but left a few weeks later to go back to his former job of TV-pundit. A strange decision which doesn't bode well for the club, who have so far lost all of their friendlies. Unless the new squad quickly blends, they could definitely struggle.

Dender (full name FC Verbroedering Denderhoutem Denderleeuw Eendracht Hekelgem – “Verbroedering” means friendship in Flemish)

City: Denderleeuw (Flemish/French)

Last season: 15th

Coach: Johan Boskamp

Stadium: Florent Beeckman - capacity 6485

Colours: Blue, Red and Black

Dender, a small club lying about 20 km west of Brussels, are the results of the merger between 3 small clubs in the area (Denderhoutem, Denderleeuw and Hekelgem). None of these clubs ever played in the top flight, only Denderleeuw (the town where they are playing) once qualified for the D2 play-offs. This new club came straight up in two seasons from D3 to D1 in 2007 and in their first season, nobody gave them a chance to survive. Logic was respected until November when the famous Dutchman Johan Boskamp (RWDM legend and best ever player and who later coached Anderlecht to numerous championships) surprisingly took over. They bought some experienced players and in the end, saved themselves quite easily. Because of the nature of the club, many expect them to go down this year but with Boskamp staying, they are more likely to stabilize themselves in mid-table.

Mons (full name Royal Albert-Elizabeth Club Mons - the name comes from King Albert 1st)

City: Mons (French) / Bergen (Flemish)

Last season: 16th

Coach: Philippe Saint-Jean

Stadium: Charles Tondreau - capacity 12000

Colours: Red and White

Nickname: the Dragons, l'Albert

Mons avoided the drop when Albert Cartier took over from Jose Riga in January (after getting the sack at FC Brussels) after being well adrift from the rest after the first half of the season. Once the season was over, some players took the club to court, looking to break their contract and search for pastures new. This is typical for Mons, a somewhat unstable club, backed by a chairman not afraid to dig deep into his pockets. Mons is a large city in the Wallonia Hainaut province who never enjoyed football success until the club were promoted for the first time to the top flight in 2003. They have flirted with the drop ever since (relegated once in the process but they came straight back) and are backed by the local mayor, Socialist Party president Elio Di Rupo. Most of the much-needed stadium rebuilding has come from public funds but the crowds are not really following, although there is potential in this town. Should they enjoy more stability, there could be better things ahead. In theory, they should be fine but with them, you never know.

Kortrijk (full name KV Kortrijk)

City: Kortrijk (Flemish) / Courtrai (French)

Last season: Division 2 champions

Coach: Hein Vanhaezebrouck

Stadium: Guldensporen (after a famous Middle-Age battle where the Flemish defeated the French troops) - capacity 6896

Colours: Red and White

Nickname: Kavé

Kortrijk are back in the D1 after an absence of 10 years. A typical yo-yo club they have experienced many financial problems in recent years. This is somewhat strange since they hail from one of the country's richest regions, called the "Golden Triangle", in the South of the West-Vlaanderen province, close to the French border. This could be explained by the fact that many fans in the area are more attracted to Flanders' powerhouse and local rival, FC Bruges. Coach Hein Vanhaezebrouch, a former journeyman player, has built a young and attractive side, who like to play attacking football. They enjoyed a couple of good cup runs in recent years and they will certainly be a match for anyone in their tiny, derelict, English-style stadium (a personal favourite during my RWDM-following days). Still, with the league reform, they are one of the favourites for the drop.

Tubize (full name AFC Tubize)

City: Tubize (French) / Tubeke (Flemish)

Last season: Division 2 play-offs winners

Coach: Albert Cartier

Stadium: Leburton - capacity 4000

Colours: Yellow and Red

Nickname: les Sangs et Or

Promoted for the first time ever to the top division (and also the first club from the Brabant Wallon province to do so), this small club is everyone's favourite for the drop. Playing in the 5th regionalized division only a decade ago, Tubize enjoyed a meteoric rise. But about half of the side who won the Final round of D2 (by winning their 6 games) has left the club (many had already signed somewhere else before the beginning of these play-offs) and the coach who led them to these heights, Philippe Saint-Jean, has left for rivals Mons. Their stadium is very small, even by Division 2 standards, and will require many improvements to welcome the likes of Anderlecht, Standard or FC Bruges and the fan base is very small (rarely exceeding 1000 - although in D1, this is certain to improve).

But I would not bet against them, as other small clubs like Roeselare, Dender and especially Westerlo have proved that, with a no-nonsense approach, you can survive in Belgium's top-flight. The new coach is the intelligent Frenchman Albert Cartier, who is someone who can lift the standards of a players group. He enjoyed relatively good results in his first two seasons at madhouse FC Brussels before getting the sack last season at the turn of the year (although that didn't prevent the club from eventually going down). He then went to Mons for the second half of the season where he saved the club from a near-certain relegation. But with three or four relegated teams, a hard season awaits them. But they will certainly give it a go.

Many teams currently playing in Division 2 are famous names. The likes of Antwerp, Lierse, Beveren and FC Liège have won a lot of national titles between them. If you include FC Brussels in the equation (for some, this franchise club is the successor of Racing Brussels, Daring Brussels and RWDM), it is even more. Clubs are coming from all the regions of Belgium, from the coast (KV Oostende) to the Luxembourg border (Excelsior Virton) to Wallonia’s capital (Union Namur) and the German-speaking part of Belgium (AS Eupen). This is certainly an attractive division again and it’s a pity that Belgium’s and Brussels legend, Union, were relegated last term.

My predictions:

• Champions: Anderlecht
• Runners-up (Champions league – in theory): FC Bruges
• UEFA Cup: AA Gent
• Cup: Cercle Bruges
• Relegated: Roeselare, Kortrijk
• Play-offs: Tubize, Mons
• Promoted: St.Truiden VV (relegated last season)
• Play-offs: Lierse, Antwerp, OH Leuven, KV Oostende