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But okay, everyone knows: if you have been on the field, or in the case of Mark van Bommel on the sideline, it is a lot less obvious to flush such a hangover.
You win some, you lose some: Van Bommel has known that for a long time now. As a player he lost three cup finals. One with Fortuna Sittard – he was suspended at the time – and two with PSV. But he was also in the winning camp three times: once with PSV, twice with Bayern Munich. As a trainer it is also in balance now: one won, one lost, always with Antwerp.
But it was logical and clear that it hurt. After the match he picked up his very disappointed and tired players one by one and encouraged them. Van den Bosch, Yusuf, Ilenikhena, Balikwisha, Alderweireld and so on: he gave them all a hug or a pat on the back. He also stopped by the fans to applaud them. But above all, the Dutchman stared ahead in silence. It’s not because he won everything last year that he can be at peace with this. Mark van Bommel is a winner through and through.
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“Very good plan”
The first question at the press conference, an hour after the match, which undoubtedly seemed to last much longer for Van Bommel: how different is the feeling than last year? Do you want to get out of here as quickly as possible? “I want to leave as soon as possible, yes,” he replied dryly. “And I’m also leaving as quickly as possible. When I’m done here, I’m gone.”
A foreign journalist suggested to Van Bommel that it could help that he once lost a Champions League and World Cup final and had therefore experienced worse. He nodded. “I even lost those finals in one month (in 2010, ed.). That experience helps you deal with disappointment and it also makes you stronger. But especially because you know how wonderful it is to win such a final, you now also feel the pain. It’s hard to accept.”
Especially because it was very close for 97 minutes and because he thought his plan was “really good”. After the 0 out of 6 against Union in the play-offs, this time he opted for a kind of 4-4-2 with Kerk in the striker. He also gave the opponent the ball. “Because they can’t deal with it well. They can counter well, but they have a hard time that way. It is then extra sad that we accept that 1-0 in a standard phase just before half time. Especially because we knew there wouldn’t be many chances on either side. Whoever scored first would have a great chance of winning.”
And so it happened. As a result, Van Bommel will say goodbye to Antwerp without a prize. Well, without a prize… He already gave the Great Old three last year and especially that first title in 66 years will remain with the supporters and actually the whole of football-loving Belgium forever. But he indicated that no one dares to claim that his second year went wrong.
Apps from colleagues
“We have to be realistic and act normal, guys. We are not Chelsea or Real Madrid. We are Antwerp. Yet we won everything last season. And this season we win the super cup and qualify for the Champions League at the expense of a very good AEK Athens. They had never heard that tune at the Bosuil and it will be very difficult to hear it again – not just in the short term but ever at all. In the meantime, with all kinds of things happening (Vermeeren leaving and financial problems in the background, ed.), we qualified for the Champions’ play-offs, which was very important, and reached the cup final. There have been a lot of losses in recent weeks, yes, but no one can say that this was a bad season. There are many teams that would want to be in our shoes. And I have received messages from trainers who would have loved to be here.”
But as I said, he was very disappointed that he was not in the winning camp. There is now only one thing to do: try to patch up his troops for the final three games. Cercle Brugge at home, Genk away, Anderlecht at home. Achieving European football is still possible, although it will not be easy. Vincent Janssen sat next to his coach and was just as disappointed and expressed the feeling of the players: “It was still possible to accept poorer results in a cup final, because this was one match in itself. But we’re going to be devastated by this. This is not nice.”
© BELGA
© BELGA
© BELGA
