Club Brugge stuck to a 2-2 draw in the topper against Anderlecht. Blauw-Zwart dominated the entire match, but fell behind twice after goals by De Cat and Degreef. Nicolò Tresoldi equalized each time, but the deserved winning goal fell short.
Ivan Leko opted for the same eleven that took the three points at Charleroi last week in extremis. The Bruges players pushed the gas pedal firmly from the kickoff, pushing Anderlecht completely away. That resulted in three good chances in the first ten minutes: a hard shot by Sabbe went just over the crossbar, after a great long ball by Stanković, a deviated shot by Tzolis went just wide and a deviation by Tresoldi whizzed just wide.
Club then slowed down but continued to monopolize the ball. After a scrimmage in front of goal, a shot by Onyedika was blocked. Moments later, Forbs could not frame his shot, while a peal from Sabbe flew straight at Coosemans. The Brusselers had to endure the law of the strongest, but were able to score on the first counter-punch ten minutes before halftime. After Bruges lost the ball, Nathan De Cat got the ball and slid the 0-1 into the far corner.
A big disappointment for Blauw-Zwart who immediately went in search of the equalizer. With success, because a few minutes before half time the deserved 1-1 goal was scored. Onyedika played Sabbe free in the penalty area and his cross was tapped in at the far post by Nicolò Tresoldi. Club smelled blood, but was lucky that Mignolet saved Degreef's shot.
At the start of the second half, Bruges immediately tried to force the lead. However, a cross from Seys went just over the head of Stanković. Instead of 2-1, however, it became 1-2. After a razor-sharp counter, the ball ended up with Tristan Degreef, who kicked it into the short corner. Club tried to respond immediately, but attempts by Tresoldi went over and wide, while Coosemans parried a hard shot by Tzolis.
Blauw-Zwart kept up plenty of pressure, but the visitors held firm. Tresoldi deviated a cross from Tzolis against the outside of the post and Coosemans parried a shot from Onyedika. Club obviously had to watch out for a fatal counterattack, but a shot by Saliba went wide and Mignolet saved on shots by Bertaccini and Stroeykens. Moreover, an Augustinsson header hit the outside of the post.
Bruges did not give up and, five minutes before time, they got what they deserved: Tresoldi kicked a cross from Tzolis delightfully into goal via the underside of the crossbar, bringing the score back into balance. Club kept pushing, but the deserved winning goal fell just short. In the final seconds, Coosemans made a miraculous save on a Tzolis attempt, while Tresoldi's rebound was also blocked. The draw brings the gap on leaders Union back to three points.
Jupiler Pro League - Matchday 28
Spectators: 29,000 - Jan Breydelstadion
Referee: Erik Lambrechts
Club Brugge: Simon Mignolet - Kyriani Sabbe (78' Hugo Siquet), Joel Ordóñez, Brandon Mechele, Joaquin Seys (78' Bjorn Meijer) - Aleksandar Stanković (75' Romeo Vermant), Raphael Onyedika (89' Hugo Vetlesen), Hans Vanaken - Carlos Forbs (75' Mamadou Diakhon), Nicolò Tresoldi, Christos Tzolis. Bench: Nordin Jackers, Jorne Spileers, Félix Lemaréchal and Shandre Campbell. Coach: Ivan Leko.
RSC Anderlecht: Colin Coosemans - Ilay Camara (65' Killian Sardella), Mihajlo Ilic, Moussa Diarra, Ludwig Augustinsson (90' Ali Maamar) - Nathan-Dylan Saliba, Enric Llansana - Tristan Degreef (77' Mario Stroeykens), Nathan De Cat (65' Adriano Bertaccini), Mihajlo Cvetkovic - Thorgan Hazard (90' Lucas Hey). Coach: Jérémy Taravel
Yellow cards: Camara, Tzolis, Augustinsson, Hazard.
Red cards: none
Goals: 36' De Cat (0-1), 42' Tresoldi (1-1), 53' Degreef (1-2), 85' Tresoldi (2-2).