After the game against KRC Genk, we gathered reactions from Igor Thiago, Maxim De Cuyper, Hans Vanaken, Denis Odoi and Nicky Hayen.
Igor Thiago: "I work hard every day to improve myself"
Igor Thiago scored the 3-0 against Genk with a delicious blast. Despite the hard work in attack, it had been several months since the Brazilian striker showed himself to be successful.
"I'm very happy that I scored again today. To score you often have to take time. You have to work hard, continuously improve yourself every match. Today it finally worked out. I didn't lose confidence because of not scoring some matches. You just have to stay calm and relaxed. The goals will come, that's soccer. Despite my transfer, I keep working hard every day to improve myself. Now I'm playing good soccer and helping the team by scoring. I am so happy with that. At my goal, it was just kicking. From my position, I have to try to aim at goal. I ended up aiming the ball into the far corner."
Club is in full contention for the title. "We deserve this. We are working hard and we deserve it right now. We have the chance to be champions, we now have to keep going like this on this momentum. Everything is possible in life, we have to improve ourselves every game like today. There are still nice matches waiting." (KN)
Maxim De Cuyper: "This shows the flow we are in now"
Maxim De Cuyper also picked up his goal. The young defender scored the fourth goal, depriving Genk of the last glimmer of hope.
"The score doesn't really reflect how the game was in my opinion. Genk was also present in the first half. Despite the big chances we already had there, we didn't deepen the score. 4-0 is maybe a little too heavy. We played one on one the whole match and used the spaces with their not fast, but strong central defenders. At my goal, I actually wanted to deposit the ball in the far corner. It's just all along at the moment and shows the flow we are in. I hope this momentum lasts as long as possible. We'll see where it ends up. I hope we have good legs on Sunday and can bring back intensity. That's the most important thing in this final phase of the league. It's good in everyone's head. Everyone has found new energy. That just shows on the field. We've found a new breath. That's hard to explain, but it's positive for us."
Except that the many games could possibly cause fatigue. "It's mental. When you're ahead 4-0 you can still run for 90 minutes, when you're behind you want it to be over as soon as possible. Although it will be important to recuperate well towards Sunday."
Club is now fully in the title race. "We are in it now and we did a good job on this matchday together with Anderlecht. But if we lose twice on the road, it looks very different. We both have it in our own hands, so what does it take? Winning our own matches. We feel since we are in the flow, we have the supporters with us. We felt there were 12 of us today, you had that impression on the pitch and in the stadium. The best thing is after Thiago's goal, that's just beautiful. We don't feel any pressure. We hunt more than we defend. That's a small advantage." (KN)
Hans Vanaken: "Watching match by match"
Club Brugge packed heavily into its home match against Genk. Although Hans Vanaken did not score, he was behind the second goal. The Limburger could therefore look back on a quasi-perfect evening with a broad smile.
"This victory is very pleasing because the final score is the result of a good match. We were the dominant team from the opening minute and of course an early goal like that always plays to your advantage. Especially in such matches it is important to score early but all in all we had enough chances to score even more. And this against a Genk that has also been in very good form in recent weeks. Also in the second half we can score early and luckily Michal (Skoras, ed) is in the right place to cleverly extend my assist into goal. I am particularly happy for him because he has already been involved in five goals since the start of the playoffs. What is the reason for this? First of all, he does get the necessary playing minutes now and seems to be grabbing those playing opportunities with both hands. Throughout the season he has been able to convince us of his qualities in training, and they are now showing during matches. Besides his talent, he also has a lot of commitment and that pays off. A bit of a similar story as with Thiago, who also works very hard for the team and fortunately also scored a goal today. But apart from all this, we continued to play forward after the 2-0 and were able to systematically build on the lead."
In addition, Vanaken also had words of praise for a strong playing Denis Odoi. "Denis was very strong today and that proves the strength of this core. It will already be difficult for the coach to choose who will be in the team next weekend. But in the end, somewhere this also gives a good feeling because solutions can be found for every injured and/or suspended person."
When asked if the battle between Anderlecht and Club is turning into a duel, the midfielder had a clear answer. "After this match you might conclude that but after Sunday it might be completely different again. Before the start of the playoffs we were already completely written off, now we are barely two points off the leader. Nevertheless, it remains important to stay calm and look at it match by match. After all, a particularly tough schedule still awaits us." (MV)
Denis Odoi: "Keeping this momentum"
Strong and frisky was how the match of the now 36-year-old Denis Odoi was described. It therefore provoked a big smile on the Ghanaian Belgian's face.
"That's nice to hear but ultimately nothing more than that. Besides, my header just before halftime should basically always be inside the box. Fortunately, the team corrected my mistake well in the second half and, especially after the break, we were able to push the lead further and further in a fine manner. But 1-0 or 4-0: the cliché remains the most important thing and that is that we take three very important points today. On the other hand, it is important to stay calm and keep our feet on the ground because we are only halfway through these playoffs. So there are still a lot of points to be won but also to be lost. But obviously this win is gratifying and we should try to keep this momentum going. Here it is important to note that the goals were scored by four different players. The early 1-0 gave us extra wings but on the other hand there was also the balance and equilibrium within our team and we stayed well in block. Moreover, we defended our result after the break by continuing to attack."
Asked whether Club should stick to the same recipe next Sunday, Odoi remained silent. "My job was to disrupt the Genk midfield as much as possible and to keep El Khannouss and El Hadj in particular in check. But Sunday is a different game and Vrancken will probably choose a different approach. It's up to us to be armed against that." (MV)
Nicky Hayen: "All the puzzle pieces fell together perfectly"
Club Brugge put in a tremendously strong performance, eventually taking a big 4-0 victory against Genk. Nicky Hayen was obviously very satisfied with his team's delivered play.
"We came out of the locker room very well. We grabbed them by the throat from the first second. Then when you can score after only five minutes, you know you can set the stadium on fire immediately with a spark like that. All the puzzle pieces fell together perfectly today. If everyone does their job both offensively and defensively, this group is capable of a lot. The players are getting a lot of recognition now and rightly so. All credits to them. If the players have confidence and work for each other, then you can achieve performances like this. But it is obviously a question of keeping this up until the end of the season. Even on rest days then you have to be very professional and take enough rest, because Sunday follows another important game."
Hayen himself also receives a lot of praise from the press, but keeps both feet firmly on the ground. "I remain level-headed under that. I know how quickly things can turn around in soccer. Recognition is not the most important thing for me. That has to go to the players, especially if they perform. As a coach, you just have to make sure the players can shine. That's the most important thing for me. I'm also a little surprised with how well things are going now, but we just worked very clearly from the beginning on certain patterns and principles. If you lose the first game, you immediately get a bash, but now we are in a positive flow. Sometimes it's a matter of hitting the right strings and that's what you see at the moment. We are now trying to keep that up until the end of the season."
Igor Thiago was able to pick up another goal after a long time and that caused a huge release. "When you see how the whole group has sympathized with Igor, that says it all. He works extremely hard for the group and that is greatly appreciated by everyone. We knew those goals would come back one day. Hopefully this goal will provide a boost of confidence and hopefully he's off again." (SF)
Review the press conference here: