Wednesday night 23 pm, De Panne, Belgium
The results of the second round vote are counted and 3 contenders remain:
Alejandro Pozuelo, playmaker of Racing Genk
Mehdi Carcela, whirlwind winger of Standard Liege
Hans Vanaken, number 10 and assist king of Club Brugge
As expected, the last one takes the Golden Boot home with a whopping 97 points difference over the second ranked, Mehdi Carcela.
Who is Hans Vanaken?
Born in 1992 in Neerpelt, in the province of Limburg in Belgium a football carreer was already written in the stars as his father Vital Vanaken, was a pro soccer player with Lommelse SK when the boy was born. Good genes, it is always a plus. Add to that a region that is populated with former miners, or relatives of former miners, an extra portion of grinta is added to the already present talent.
He played with the youth squads of Lommelse Sk, where his father played, until the club went bankrupt. His talent didn't go unnoticed and PSV Eindhoven picked up the young boy and added him to their academy. He stayed there for six years and went back to his old team, Lommel United, that was re-established after a fusion with another local club.
He started playing for the first team in the Belgian second Pro League at the age of 18 in 2010. Eventually he played 79 games in 3 seasons for Lommel United and scored 22 goals as attacking midfielder. Not bad for such a young player.
His performances and especially his technique and vista were picked up by the bigger teams in Belgium. He chose not to take a big leap and signed a deal with Sporting Lokeren, a club in the Jupiler Pro League, but not a top 6 team. A smart move, he picked up the higher rythm easily, with the help of coach Peter Maes, which is a good friend of his father. In 3 seasons with Lokeren, he charmed the Belgian fans with amazing assists, and 21 goals in 84 games. A tall attacking midfielder with excellent technique and vista, that scores a goal every 4 games, gets attention from bigger clubs. And so he went to Club Brugge for 4 million EUR.
At Club Brugge, the pace and higher level of play made the transition a bit thougher than at Lokeren, but eventually he more and more became the player that decides the style of play of Club Brugge. After 3 and half seasons of the Belgian top tier club, he has played 174 games for Club Brugge in which he scored 46 times and gave the same amount of assists. Great statistics, to which he can add two titles with Club Brugge. He even scored 2 goals in the Champions League in the 2018/19 season agains AS Monaco and played two times for the Belgian national team, in a generation that has talent for sale!
Too slow?
Is the sky the limit for this guy? I don't know, his height makes his actions seem slow, but that is just a fata morgana. He still has loads of growth potential, and a big transfer to a top competion will not wait long. It could even be happening in this winter mercato. I hope not for Club Brugge, but when the millions from Italy, England or Spain come waving at them, then nothing will hold him back.
I hope Europe gets to know this guy, but hopefully he finishes the season in Belgium.
Sincerely,
Pele23
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