Football Season Guide

Genk had a pretty poor season for their standards last term. They started the campaign slow and despite improved form from February onward this wasn’t enough. Genk sneaked into Play-off I on the last day of the regular season. They edged KAA Gent for the sixth place only on goal difference. Gent took revenge against Genk only a few months later though. The Blues finished fifth in the play-offs and this meant they faced the winners of Play-off II KAA Gent in one final showdown for the last available European visa. Genk hosted this season-saving match but despite that they lost 0:1. After 2 years in charge coach Vranaken was sacked at the end of the season. Genk replaced him with the successful at Sint-Truiden last term German Thorsten Fink. Fink used his connections at Sint-Truiden and 2 of the main new signings so far this summer came from there. Defender Smets and winger Steuckers were regulars under Fink last season and they are expected to play often now in Genk colours too. The only major departure so far has been the main goalie Maarten Vandevoordt. Genk are yet to sign a replacement but in the experienced Van Crombrugge they have a goalkeeper that could easily become the main starter if no suitable new signing is found. Fink used mainly 3-4-2-1 formation last season at Sint-Truiden. This was the same shape Genk favoured too, so the new manager’s ideas actually fit well what Genk are used to themselves. The forward line was boosted with the signing of the South Korean Hyeon-gyu Oh. He is expected to form a productive bond with the other 2 strikers Tolu and Zeqiri. Genk’s captain Bryan Heynen had some serious health issues last season. He is key figure in midfield and keeping him healthy and available is a primary goal for the new manager. Genk win less than 40% of their matches when Heynen can’t play so how successful this season will be will depend a lot on his health.