Hugo Vetlesen: "We push each other to get even better"
Vetlesen netted his second Man Of The Match trophy. "It's nice to be winning this award, but it's thanks to the team that it came to me. We did an excellent job as a team. It's hard to come here to play our football, but we've gotten through it well." He won the previous Man Of The Match trophy against Sint-Truiden. "That was also nice. I came on well and helped to tip the match. Now I score quickly and I'm also very happy with that. Offensively we are doing our job well and that is the most important thing."
The Norwegian is increasingly crowning himself Mister Play-offs through his important role in this final phase of the competition. "Tzolis is also doing excellent, as are many other players. Christos and I keep pushing each other to get even better. We have to continue from this same momentum and then things will further take off."
Finally, it is no secret that Vetlesen dreams of going to the World Cup. Does he expect a call from the Norwegian national coach? "I wouldn't mind Solbakken's call, but I'm just trying to show with performances that I deserve my spot in the Norwegian national team. Then we'll see at the end of the season."
Hans Vanaken: "As long as we do our thing and win ourselves, we have little to reproach"
A deserved win for Blue & Black at the Planet Group Arena, taking the team to first place for the time being, with Union with one game in hand.
"We win 0-2 and we have a clean sheet, which is all in all very nice. It's nice that I was able to do my bit with an assist. That clean sheet was a long time coming and is nice for our defense, for Nordin Jackers as well."
In the second half, Kadri hit the woodwork. "We actually gave little away and won in a good way. The ball on the crossbar was well kicked and we got some luck there. We could have finished it earlier ourselves, but we failed on the counterattack. Other than that ball hitting the crossbar, the home team really wasn't able to create much."
These Play-Offs promise to be another nail-biter, but Club's captain has experience with that. "We go from four points behind to currently one point ahead of their game. It's been 14 years that it works that way. Just because you lose, even if it's against a rival, doesn't mean you're eliminated and can't make it. As long as we do our own thing and win ourselves, we have little reason to blame ourselves. Today we put pressure on them, but we really shouldn't be concerned with that."
Ivan Leko: "Very satisfied with our way of playing football"
A mature win for Club in the Battle of Flanders. Coach Ivan Leko was satisfied with his team's performance.
"I am very satisfied," the Bruges coach began his account. "I think we started the match very well with, among other things, some good aggressive football. We knew that our opponent would probably go for a long ball game, counting on that second ball. We prepared for this and we tried to take control of the match. We also needed to be dangerous and I think that was definitely the case. Every time we got into the final third there was always danger. First we scored that goal early on, but then we had a few more chances. Here I was very satisfied, but of course there were also moments when we were no longer able to stop their long balls early. Then it's a kind of "casino play"(kicking the long ball and then fighting for the second ball). In some of these situations they were dangerous, but otherwise they didn't really have any big chances. At the end of the first half, however, you did have the feeling that they were a bit more into the game. In the second half, that actually occurred again. We started well and created opportunities. The best chances were definitely for us and we controlled Gent's power football pretty well."
"It's a nice statement that we've now won four out of five games, three of which were away games. So I am very pleased with how we are performing, but of course there are always things that need to improve and that we also want to improve. Now, above all, we have to enjoy ourselves and prepare for our next match starting tomorrow."
Some key players, such as Forbs, are once again growing towards their best form. "This was the best and most complete version of Carlos(Forbs) today. In the last few months, this was his best away game. Both today and last Wednesday, he was a key player in our win. I would say 'big games are for big teams and big players'. When things get tough for a while, you have to ask for the ball and be the 'man'. If it's 3-0, for example, then everyone can play well. He was there today from the first to the last minute and let's hope he and the team can continue to do this way."