October 13, 2022

The brief from today:

Brugge advance

Going into this season’s Champions League group stage, Belgian side, Club Brugge, were hardly expected to do much in a group including: Atletico Madrid, Porto, and Bayer Leverkusen. Part of the reason for the low expectations is the fact that there was a coaching upheaval after Alfred Schreuder, who had led the team to the Belgian league title las season, left to become Ajax’s new manager. In addition to that, they also lost arguably their best player, Charles de Ketelaere, during the summer transfer window after he moved to Serie A side, AC Milan. Despite those challenges, new manager, Carl Hoefkens, has managed to guide the team to qualification to the first knockout round. Hoefkens, a former Brugge assistant coach and player, has performed admirably in his first senior managerial role, with the Belgian side achieving three wins and one draw, without conceding a single goal in the opening four group matches. As a result of this form, Brugges now find themselves alongside European heavyweights: Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, Manchester City, and Napoli as the first teams to advance from the group stage with two matches to spare. One more draw in the final two group games will see the Belgian “minnows” cement top spot in the group, which would potentially grant them a favorable draw in the next round, and perhaps maybe even possible progression to the quarter finals. It is still early for all those hypotheticals, but what is certain presently is that the Belgian champions are proving doubters wrong thus far.

Brugge players celebrate with their fans after qualifying for the Champions League knockout round

Football Manager pays dividends

While EA Sports’ FIFA franchise has been the most popular computer game amongst football fans over the past two decades, there is another another option that has been enjoyed by a more niche set of supporters. Football Manager, a game that allows users to enjoy match simulations in the role as a manager, was originally launched in 1992. Initially geared towards the Championship in England, it has since progressively grown to include multiple leagues from around the world of football. Football manager may not have the mass appeal of the FIFA franchise, but it certainly has an avid fanbase. Among its many diligent users is Belgian, William Still, who has now parlayed his adeptness at the game into a career in real life management. Ligue 1 side, Reims, who recently “suspended” their coach, Oscar Garcia, with a view to replacing him outright, have opted to grant William Still the interim manger position at the club. Still didn't just appear out of nowhere, however, he has been using his Football Manager honed skills for years now. He initially began his career in England with the Preston U14 team, which was followed by various assistant/caretaker roles at Belgian clubs: Sint-Truiden, Lierse and Beerschot. He would eventually get the senior coaching position at Beerschot for six months in 2021, but would be replaced at the end of 2020/21 season. Following that, Still moved on to be the assistant coach at Reims for the 2021/22 season, but left early in the campaign after being recruited by Standard Liege back in Belgium to be one of their assistants. He would then circle back to Reims, again as assistant, at the start of the 2022/23 season. After only one win in the opening 10 matches, however, head coach Oscar Garcia was relieved of his duties and Still was awarded a promotion. While he has previously held the head coach position from his time at Beerschot, the challenge now facing the 30-year-old is of a different magnitude. Technically still in the caretaker manager, the fact that Still’s knowledge base, which primarily came from Football Manager, has afforded him such an opportunity is truly astounding. The issue now becomes whether his performance in the role will either slow down, or even halt, Reims’s search for a permanent manager, and instead opt to confirm Still as the full-time boss.

William Still (above) has gone from playing Football Manager to coaching Reims