By Samindra Kunti in Brugge
September 19 – Spearheaded by midfielder Hans Vanaken, Club Brugge thrashed AS Monaco 4-1 in the Champions League, marking back-to-back Belgian victories in the competition this week.
On the back of a humiliating 1-0 defeat against La Louviere in the domestic league last weekend, Brugge bounced back on Thursday with a commanding first-half performance to outclass AS Monaco and retain their form from last season’s campaign when the Belgian club reached the second round of the reformatted competition.
This summer, Ardon Jashari and Maxim de Cuyper were among the players to depart Brugge, but that exodus of class and quality didn’t affect Nicky Hayen’s team against the third placed team in Ligue 1.
Just after the half-hour mark, Club Brugge took the lead through a composed finish from Nicolo Tresoldi, assisted by Vanaken. It was a reward for their first-half dominance that resulted in a series of chances, but both Tresoldi and Christos Tzolis had lacked precision inside the box. In the 39th minute, Brugge doubled their lead when Raphael Onyedika scrambled the ball home from a Vanaken corner.
The veteran midfielder orchestrated Brugge’s victory and wrapped up the first half with a fine volley from the edge of the box, 3-0. In total, the hosts had 26 attempts and, with 15 minutes left, Mamadou Diakhon picked out the bottom left corner from a Joaquin Seys cross, the substitutes combining for Brugge’s fourth. In injury time, Ansu Fati, another substitute, got a consolation goal for Monaco.
Fati’s strike could not spoil an almost perfect night for Brugge. Early on, goalkeeper Simon Mignolet limped off injured after he had saved a tenth-minute penalty from Maghnes Akliouche.
It has been 22 years since two Belgian clubs last won two matches in the same week in the Champions League. In 2003, Brugge defeated AC Milan 1-0 with a strike from Andres Mendoza and Anderlecht won against Celtic Glasgow with the same scoreline. Earlier this week, Union Saint-Gilloise enjoyed a dream debut in the competition with a 3-1 away victory against PSV Eindhoven.
The three points will be welcome for Club Brugge, who reached the second round of the Champions League last season, but face an uphill battle to repeat the feat with fixtures against FC Barcelona, Arsenal and Bayern Munich to come. They travel to Atalanta next.
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