Alderweireld's Antwerp fairy tale

It was an incredible fairy-tale ending to a rollercoaster afternoon of unrelenting and thrilling drama on the final day of the Belgian league season

In the 94th minute, Toby Alderweireld, a veteran of the Belgian game back at his hometown club Antwerp, delivered the coup de grace to opponents Genk and fellow title rivals Union SaintGilloise. His goal almost defied his team’s blue-collar style. With perfect timing, he steered his shot into the top left corner and the ball rippled the net with a crushing finality, signalling the end of a long 66-year wait: for the first time since 1957 Antwerp were champions of Belgium again.

Cue delirium. Alderweireld sprinted across the pitch towards the away fans, followed by coach Mark van Bommel, the rest of the team and staff members. Scenes of ecstasy were repeated at Antwerp’s Bosuilstadion where those without tickets had watched the match on big screens. In Brussels, the picturesque Joseph Marien Stadium was enveloped in a sense of delusion and incomprehension.

Football, Union supporters learned once again, is a cruel sport.

After all, this should have been Union’s day. All afternoon, there had been a crackle in the air in the narrow streets of Saint-Gilles. The local club, with deep roots in the fabric of Brussels football, were on the verge of winning the Belgian league crown for the first time since 1935. They had also reached the last eight of the Europa League, falling at the hands of Bayer Leverkusen in a season when Belgian clubs were confronted with the stark reality that the Europa Conference League was their new European home. Gent and Anderlecht featured in the quarter-finals of Europe’s new third-tier club competition.