[Football] Union Saint-Gilloise

[Slum_Wolf]

Assuming Anderlecht win tonight and everything else remains the same until the end of the season, USGs positive points tally will be cut from 8 to 4 then?

Yep!

Like us, also waiting for a player to return from the Japanese and Côte d'Ivoire squads.

 

[Slum_Wolf]

For some reason my game updates stopped at 3-0 so was surprised to see it ended a bit closer than that! Some flair flares, there.

Thankfully Molenbeek's second was very late...Union were fined last season for flares so no doubt expect the same again...

 

[Si Gull]

Thankfully Molenbeek's second was very late...Union were fined last season for flares so no doubt expect the same again...

Yes, not as close as the result suggested. Can't understand how they get all the flares into the ground; at least it shouldn't be a points deduction.

 

[hans kraay fan club]

Home derby for Union on Wednesday - Molenbeek. Busy February - 4 league games, Belgian Cup semi final (2 legs v Club Brugge) and Europa Conference play off (2 legs v Eintracht Frankfurt).

View attachment 174105

Interesting first half in that game, for Jan Verthongen - TWO catastrophic errors at the back leading to goals, then a thumping header to get his team back in it.

 

[drew]

Good result for USG tonight. Would be great to go into the play-offs with a 5pt advantage.

 

[timbha]

Top six play the other teams twice, starting with half the points they won in the regular season, rounded up. Any points gained by rounding are deducted in the case of a tie. Anderlecht are playing tonight so quite likely an 8 point gap by close of play tonight, but they have a game to replay thanks to a VAR f*** up. Only 7 regular season games to go for Union.

‘Misapplication of the laws’: VAR error leads to full replay of Belgian match

Genk were denied a penalty retake in defeat to Anderlecht and the ruling to overturn it is believed to be first of its kind in European football

www.theguardian.com

So they play another 10 matches with 30 points at stake?

 

[Slum_Wolf]

Good result for USG tonight. Would be great to go into the play-offs with a 5pt advantage.

So they play another 10 matches with 30 points at stake?

Yes - 10 matches with 30 points at stake. 7 regular league games to go, then the play-off fun begins.

Interesting weekend ahead as the top 6 are in action against each other

Genk (6) v Union (1)
Royal Antwerp (5) v Club Brugge (3)
Anderlecht (2) v Gent (4)

Remaining fixtures here - https://www.livescore.com/en/football/team/union-stgilloise/3468/fixtures/

 

[Slum_Wolf]

Another very good win for Union...1-0 away at Genk.



Anderlecht won 1-0 at home to Gent (Anders Dreyer penalty). Royal Antwerp won 2-1 at home to Club Brugge and Cercle Brugge now in the top 6...

 

[Gabbiano]

The Belgian league seems like a lot of fun. There's about 7 or 8 clubs who theoretically have the means to win the title, and different clubs regularly do. It's genuinely competitive and changes shape every season (largely because all the best players get pilfered but alas...). The playoff system is odd and seems a little unfair but adds to the entertainment.

Could this be the year that USG finally win it?

 

[One Teddy Maybank]

The Belgian league seems like a lot of fun. There's about 7 or 8 clubs who theoretically have the means to win the title, and different clubs regularly do. It's genuinely competitive and changes shape every season (largely because all the best players get pilfered but alas...). The playoff system is odd and seems a little unfair but adds to the entertainment.

Could this be the year that USG finally win it?

I hope so, but really don’t like the play off system.

Having won the league once, the lottery of more head to heads seem ridiculous IMO.

 

[Doc Lynam]

Does Uncle Tony still hold any stake in the club? Thought he sold it when we entered Europe.

 

[Justice]

Does Uncle Tony still hold any stake in the club? Thought he sold it when we entered Europe.

His right hand man took over in name only. The Redbull clubs do similar.

 

[Slum_Wolf]

Does Uncle Tony still hold any stake in the club? Thought he sold it when we entered Europe.

Sure Alex Muzio could tell you the exact details but from a player deal perspective no Mitoma, Undav or Adingra type transactions between the clubs for a while yet. https://www.theguardian.com/footbal...-cleared-europe-uefa-multi-club-ties-toulouse

 

[Audax]

Does Uncle Tony still hold any stake in the club? Thought he sold it when we entered Europe.

Reduced but still has a stake IIRC. Just had to reduce it enough so he no longer has (on paper) a controlling interest in the team. Which, IMO, is stupid - because the inter-club transfer/loan bans do the job that's needed.

 

[amexer]

I hope so, but really don’t like the play off system.

Having won the league once, the lottery of more head to heads seem ridiculous IMO.

Absolute joke you can finish 5/10 points clear after a full season and have to enter playoffs. Maybe a case for playoffs for Europa league positions but winner of league should get the Champions league spot

 

[Gabbiano]

Absolute joke you can finish 5/10 points clear after a full season and have to enter playoffs. Maybe a case for playoffs for Europa league positions but winner of league should get the Champions league spot

Well I'm sure the Belgian clubs are used to it and understand how to plan their seasons accordingly.

It's something closer to a US style format, eg NFL. First round robin league system and then the best teams compete for the overall win.

At least with the Belgian system the benefit of doing well in the first part of the season is more than just seeding for knockouts. But for the NFL system, if the strongest team on paper doesn't win the Superbowl, there aren't complaints of unjustness, it's just the nature of the format.

I'm not sure what to make of it really, but without it there wouldn't have been the excitement of the last day of last season. USG, Antwerp and Genk were all on course to win the title at some point over those 90 minutes.

 

[One Teddy Maybank]

Well I'm sure the Belgian clubs are used to it and understand how to plan their seasons accordingly.

It's something closer to a US style format, eg NFL. First round robin league system and then the best teams compete for the overall win.

At least with the Belgian system the benefit of doing well in the first part of the season is more than just seeding for knockouts. But for the NFL system, if the strongest team on paper doesn't win the Superbowl, there aren't complaints of unjustness, it's just the nature of the format.

I'm not sure what to make of it really, but without it there wouldn't have been the excitement of the last day of last season. USG, Antwerp and Genk were all on course to win the title at some point over those 90 minutes.

Only the NFL have 6 separate divisions, not one league, so although I take your point re seedlings, I don’t agree.

To play every team in the league, home and away, finish 10 points clear, have that advantage halved and then potentially get overtaken in a mini tournament doesn’t sit well with me.

 

[hans kraay fan club]

Only the NFL have 6 separate divisions, not one league, so although I take your point re seedlings, I don’t agree.

To play every team in the league, home and away, finish 10 points clear, have that advantage halved and then potentially get overtaken in a mini tournament doesn’t sit well with me.

Okay - not exactly like NFL then, but more like the Rugby League Superleague. 12 teams play each other twice in a round-robin, to qualify for a play-off competition, culminating in the Grand Final to crown the champions. Australian A-League (soccer) is the same, and MLS very similar.

I don't think any league structure is inherently 'unfair', if everyone starts each season understanding the rules / format. The Belgian system, where the points accrued at least have some (50%) value, is 'fairer' than most.

 

[One Teddy Maybank]

Okay - not exactly like NFL then, but more like the Rugby League Superleague. 12 teams play each other twice in a round-robin, to qualify for a play-off competition, culminating in the Grand Final to crown the champions. Australian A-League (soccer) is the same, and MLS very similar.

I don't think any league structure is inherently 'unfair', if everyone starts each season understanding the rules / format. The Belgian system, where the points accrued at least have some (50%) value, is 'fairer' than most.

Don’t follow rugby so can’t comment. The US were always going to adopt a similar approach to their other main sports. A league can’t comment…. But the main football leagues do not to the best of my knowledge follow this format.

We’ll just have to disagree, it’s not about the rules being changed or anything like that, so the ‘everyone understanding’ is a non-issue. I really do not see having the gap halved is remotely fair, having battled through ?38 games to finish first. You are effectively champions at that point in my mind.

“Fairer than most”, are there other alternative approaches rather than the league winners format?

 

[hans kraay fan club]

Don’t follow rugby so can’t comment. The US were always going to adopt a similar approach to their other main sports. A league can’t comment…. But the main football leagues do not to the best of my knowledge follow this format.

We’ll just have to disagree, it’s not about the rules being changed or anything like that, so the ‘everyone understanding’ is a non-issue. I really do not see having the gap halved is remotely fair, having battled through ?38 games to finish first. You are effectively champions at that point in my mind.

“Fairer than most”, are there other alternative approaches rather than the league winners format?

Sorry. 'Fairer than most' play-off formats.

Any play-off system to decide a title seems incongruous to us, because we are not used to it. But it would seem completely normal for say a fan of Wakefield or Widnes, and that's what their season builds toward.

I don't know what the Belgian league has done historically.

Do you oppose the play-off system for promotion in our football structure? That is just as inherently unfair (the team finishing third having no advantage over the team finishing 6th, in the quest for promotion) as deciding the title in such a manner. yet the play-offs have proved a huge plus in general - keeping many more teams' seasons alive, far deeper into the season.