A boiling Olympic Stadium, incredible fighting spirit, and two absolute gems from match-winner Anas Haj Mohamed: on Sunday evening, our Mannekes secured a fantastic and well-deserved 2-1 victory over RSC Anderlecht. Trainer Mo Messoudi’s team advances to the next round of the Croky Cup, where we will welcome KRC Genk to our own Olympic Stadium!

Flying start for our Mannekes

From the very first second, our Beren left no doubt about it: there was nothing to get at 't Kiel tonight. Barely 45 seconds had passed when Arnold Vula—after a fine through ball from Genki Haraguchi—found himself one-on-one with Anderlecht goalkeeper Heekeren, who barely managed to save. Beerschot kept pressing and threatened again through Vula, though the visitors also showed their teeth with a shot by Winkler off the post.

In the 22nd minute came the deserved reward. From a well-curled corner kick by captain Lukas Van Eenoo, Anas Haj Mohamed struck the loose ball centrally and unstoppably into the back of the net: 1-0! Anderlecht tried to strike back shortly before halftime, but our goalkeeper William Popp pulled off a brilliant reflex save on a header by Bentayeb. We headed into the dressing room with a 1-0 lead.

Haj Mohamed strikes again

The fire remained in the match in the second half. Brian Plat let fly with a surprising effort, and goalkeeper Popp stayed alert on the other side. After an hour of play, the match took a decisive turn when Maamar picked up his second yellow card following a tug on Haj Mohamed. Anderlecht were reduced to ten men, and Beerschot capitalized fully.

In the 72nd minute, Vula initiated a swift counter-attack and set up Haj Mohamed on the left. He found Glenn Claes, whose shot was blocked by Heekeren, but Haj Mohamed reacted like a jack-in-the-box to tap in his second of the evening: 2-0!

Anderlecht threw everything forward in the closing stages. In the 86th minute, substitute Bertaccini pulled one back (2-1) to set up a tense finale. However, our boys fought for every inch of purple-and-white turf and crossed the finish line to secure the win after five nerve-wracking minutes of stoppage time.

Next stop: KRC Genk at home!

With this magnificent performance, our Mannekes thoroughly deserve their place in the last sixteen of the cup. And the cup adventure continues in brilliant fashion for our supporters: in the next round, we take on KRC Genk at home in our Olympic Stadium! K Beerschot VA   RSC Anderlecht

22' Anas Haj Mohamed1-0 72' Anas Haj Mohamed2-0  2-186' Adriano Bertaccini


Lineup13 - William Popp
4 - Brian Plat
5 - Sem Audoor
6 - Bas Van den Eynden
7 - Toshio Lake
8 - Lukas Van Eenoo
15 - Arnold Vula
20 - Mats Rits
21 - Anas Haj Mohamed
76 - Dennis Gyamfi
78 - Genki Haraguchi


LineupJustin Heekeren - 32
Ludwig Augustinsson - 6
Marten Winkler - 10
Oliver Antman - 11
Andrew Omobamidele - 12
Thelo Aasgaard - 19
Tawfik Bentayeb - 21
Leo Petrot - 27
Mario Stroeykens - 29
Ilias Koutsoupias - 30
Ali Maamar - 79


Substitutes3 - Milan Govaers
10 - Glenn Claes
18 - Axl Van Himbeeck
19 - Jordan Bustin
24 - Edisson Jordanov
26 - Brent Stevens
32 - D'Margio Wright-Phillips
41 - Takatora Einaga
45 - Ensar Brahic


SubstitutesZoumana Keita - 2
Oleg Reabciuk - 5
Mihaljo Cvetkovic - 9
Lukas Ambros - 18
Enric Llansana - 24
Colin Coosemans - 26
Kais Houdoussi Barrt - 50
Tristan Degreef - 83
Adriano Bertaccini - 91


Cards Arnold Vula (40')
Anas Haj Mohamed (59')
Anas Haj Mohamed (93')



Cards Mario Stroeykens (34')
Marten Winkler (59')
Leo Petrot (71')
Thelo Aasgaard (75')
Ali Maamar (20')

Substitutions46' - Toshio Lake D'Margio Wright-Phillips
69' - Mats Rits Glenn Claes
69' - Dennis Gyamfi Milan Govaers
76' - Anas Haj Mohamed Edisson Jordanov
Substitutions69' - Ludwig Augustinsson Tristan Degreef
69' - Ilias Koutsoupias Mihaljo Cvetkovic
77' - Mario Stroeykens Enric Llansana
77' - Tawfik Bentayeb Adriano Bertaccini
SubjectsRSCA Anderlecht Anas Haj Mohamed