2010–11 Belgian Pro League

The 2010–11 season of the Belgian Pro League (also known as Jupiler Pro League for sponsorship reasons) is the 108th season of top-tier football in Belgium. It began on 30 July 2010 with the first match of the regular season and will end in May 2011 with the last matches of the playoff rounds. Anderlecht are the defending champions.

Changes from 2009–10

For the second time, a system of playoffs will be used to determine the Belgian champions (contested by the top 6 teams after the regular season) and which teams will play in Europe next season (teams ranked 7–14 playoff after the regular season with the winner entering a further playoff for the chance to 'steal' the European place of the lowest ranked team in the Top 6 playoff). In terms of relegation, a playoff has been introduced between the 15th and 16th team after the regular season; these teams play each other 5 times in a mini-league, with the team which finished fifteenth playing at home in matches 1, 3 and 5 and starting with a 3-point bonus. The loser of this playoff series will be relegated, whilst the winner will play the Second division relegation playoff with three teams from the Belgian Second Division for the chance to retain their place in first division.^[9]

Teams

On 28 December 2009, during the previous season, Mouscron went bankrupt and was immediately relegated. Roeselare ended the season in 15th place, forcing them to take part in the relegation play offs. As they lost these play offs they were also relegated and replaced by playoff winners Eupen. With this, Eupen became the first ever team from the German community to play at the highest level of Belgian football. Earlier, Belgian Second Division champions Lierse had been directly promoted.

Stadia and locations

Anderlecht

G. Beerschot

Club Bruges

Cercle Bruges

Charleroi

Eupen

Genk

Ghent

Kortrijk

Standard Liège

Lierse

Lokeren

Mechelen

Sint-Truiden

Zulte-Waregem

Westerlo

Location of teams in Belgian Pro League 2010–11

Personnel and sponsoring

Club	Chairman	Current manager	Team captain	Kitmaker	Shirt sponsor
Anderlecht !R.S.C. Anderlecht	Roger Vanden Stock	Ariel Jacobs	Lucas Biglia	Adidas	BNP Paribas Fortis
Cercle !Cercle Brugge K.S.V.	Frans Schotte	Bob Peeters	Denis Viane	Masita	A D M B
Charleroi !R. Charleroi S.C.	Abbas Bayat	Luka Peruzović	Rudy Riou	Masita	VOO
Club !Club Brugge K.V.	Pol Jonckheere	Adrie Koster	Carl Hoefkens	Puma	Dexia
Eupen !K.A.S. Eupen	Dieter Steffens	Danny Ost	Danijel Milićević	Jartazi	Jartazi
Genk !K.R.C. Genk	Herbert Houben	Franky Vercauteren	Dániel Tőzsér	Nike	Euphony
Gent !K.A.A. Gent	Ivan De Witte	Francky Dury	Bernd Thijs	Jako	VDK
Germinal !K.F.C. Germinal Beerschot	Jos Verhaegen	Jacky Mathijssen	Philippe Clement	Joma	Quick
Kortrijk !K.V. Kortrijk	Jozef Allijns	Hein Vanhaezebrouck	Karim Belhocine	Nike	Digipass by VASCO
Lierse !Lierse S.K.	Maged Samy	Trond Sollied	Jurgen Cavens	Jako	Wadi Degla
Lokeren !K.S.C. Lokeren Oost-Vlaanderen	Roger Lambrecht	Peter Maes	Killian Overmeire	Masita	Q-Team VP Lambrecht
Mechelen !KV Mechelen	Johan Timmermans	Marc Brys	Julien Gorius	Joma	Telenet
Sint-Truiden !K. Sint-Truidense V.V.	Roland Duchâtelet	Guido Brepoels	Peter Delorge	Lotto	Belisol
Standard !Standard Liège	Reto Stiffler	Dominique D'Onofrio	Steven Defour	Planete Rouge	e-lotto.be
Westerlo !K.V.C. Westerlo	Herman Wijnants	Jan Ceulemans	Jef Delen	Saller	Willy Naessens
Zulte !S.V. Zulte-Waregem	Willy Naessens	Hugo Broos	Ludwin Van Nieuwenhuyze	Patrick	Enfinity, Petrus

Managerial changes

During summer break

Team	Outgoing manager	Manner of departure	Date of vacancy	Replaced by	Date of appointment
Charleroi	Tommy Craig	Sacked	14 April 2010[10]	Jacky Mathijssen	4 June 2010[11]
Lokeren	Emilio Ferrera	Contract ended.	26 April 2010[12]	Peter Maes	20 May 2010[13]
Germinal Beerschot	Jos Daerden	Contract ended.	End of 2009-10 season[14]	Glen De Boeck	21 May 2010[15]
Kortrijk	Georges Leekens	Signed as head coach of the Belgium national football team.	5 May 2010[16]	Hein Vanhaezebrouck	6 June 2010[17]
Mechelen	Peter Maes	Signed for Lokeren.	20 May 2010[13]	Marc Brys	27 May 2010[18]
Cercle Brugge	Glen De Boeck	Signed for Germinal Beerschot.	21 May 2010[15]	Bob Peeters	26 May 2010[19]
Gent	Michel Preud'homme	Signed for Twente.	23 May 2010[20]	Francky Dury	10 June 2010[21]
Zulte-Waregem	Francky Dury	Signed for Gent.	10 June 2010[21]	Bart De Roover	11 June 2010[22]

During regular season

Team	Outgoing manager	Manner of departure	Date of vacancy	Replaced by	Date of appointment	Position in table
Eupen	Danny Ost	Resigned	4 September 2010[23]	Ezio Capuano	7 September 2010[24]	16th
Lierse	Aimé Anthuenis	Sacked	19 September 2010[25]	Eric Van Meir	19 September 2010[25]	15th
Charleroi	Jacky Mathijssen	Sacked	20 September 2010[26]	Csaba László	23 September 2010[27]	14th
Eupen	Ezio Capuano	Resigned	24 September 2010[28]	Albert Cartier	24 September 2010[29]	16th
Zulte-Waregem	Bart De Roover	Sacked	24 October 2010[30]	Hugo Broos	27 October 2010[31]	12th
Germinal Beerschot	Glen De Boeck	Sacked	29 November 2010[32]	Jacky Mathijssen	2 December 2010[33]	13th
Lierse	Eric Van Meir	Caretaker replaced	30 December 2010[34]	Trond Sollied	1 January 2011[35]	15th
Charleroi	Csaba László	Sacked	17 March 2011[36]	Tibor Balogh	17 March 2011[36]	16th

During playoffs

Team	Outgoing manager	Manner of departure	Date of vacancy	Replaced by	Date of appointment	Position in table
Charleroi	Tibor Balogh	Caretaker replaced	24 March 2011[37]	Zoltan Kovács	24 March 2011[37]	2nd in Relegation Playoff
Charleroi	Zoltan Kovács	Sacked	4 April 2011[38]	Luka Peruzović	4 April 2011[38]	2nd in Relegation Playoff
Eupen	Albert Cartier	Sacked	13 April 2011[39]	Danny Ost	13 April 2011[39]	1st in Relegation Playoff

Regular season

League table

Source: soccerway.com
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) number of matches won; if teams are still tied a playoff is organised
(C) = Champion; (R) = Relegated; (P) = Promoted; (E) = Eliminated; (O) = Play-off winner; (A) = Advances to a further round.
Only applicable when the season is not finished:
(Q) = Qualified to the phase of tournament indicated; (TQ) = Qualified to tournament, but not yet to the particular phase indicated; (RQ) = Qualified to the relegation tournament indicated; (DQ) = Disqualified from tournament.

Positions by round

Note: The classification was made after the weekend (or midweek) of each matchday, so postponed matches were only processed at the time they were played to represent the real evolution in standings. The postponed matches are:

• Matchday 15: Eupen vs. Mechelen of 13 November because of a flooded pitch, to be played on 18 January between matchdays 22 and 23.^[40]
• Matchday 17: Kortrijk vs. Lokeren of 27 November because of excessive rainfall and snow, to be played on 18 January between matchdays 22 and 23.^[41]
• Matchday 18: Charleroi vs. Cercle Brugge and Lierse vs. Mechelen of 4 December because of snow. The match Lierse vs. Mechelen is to be played on 15 February between matchdays 27 and 28,^[42][43] whereas on 21 December (between matchdays 20 and 21) the match Charleroi vs. Cercle Brugge has been awarded a 0–5 victory to Cercle Brugge as Charleroi did not "try everything possible to allow the match to be played".^[44] On 17 March, just two days before the final matchday, the decision is reversed as Charleroi had submitted a complaint at the BAS. BAS stands for the Belgian court of Arbitration of Sport, which is the Belgian version of the Court of Arbitration for Sport.^[45] As a result of this decision, Charleroi regained a chance of avoiding the relegation playoff, as they were only five points behind the 14th place, with two matches to play. Later that day, the decision is made to play the match on 23 March, which is unconventional as this meant that not all teams will play their final match on the same time.^[46]
• Matchday 20: Lokeren vs. Cercle Brugge and Sint-Truiden vs. Mechelen of 18 December were cancelled because of too many icy patches and/or snow on the pitch.^[47][48] The match between Lokeren and Cercle Brugge was rescheduled to be played on February 2, between matchdays 24 and 25.^[49] On 28 December (between matchdays 21 and 22) Mechelen was awarded a 0-5 victory as Sint-Truiden did not provide proper playing conditions,^[50] however Sint-Truiden pressed charges for unfair treatment. The club was proven right in court and as a result the forfait became undone on 25 January (between matchdays 23 and 24) and the match was replayed on 23 February (between matchdays 27 and 28).^[51] The match Germinal Beerschot - Gent of 19 December was stopped after 10 minutes at a score of 0-0 because of excessive snowfall,^[52] it will be replayed on February 16, between matchdays 26 and 27.^[49]
• Matchday 21: With the whole of Belgium suffering from excessive snow, several matches were cancelled, mostly because it was too dangerous to send thousands of supporters out on the slippery roads. Eupen vs. Zulte-Waregem, Charleroi vs. Germinal Beerschot, Westerlo vs. Lokeren^[53] and Mechelen vs. Kortrijk of the 26th of December were thus cancelled.^[54] The derby between Genk and Sint-Truiden of the 27th was also postponed.^[55] All of these matches were rescheduled to be played on February 2, between matchdays 24 and 25, except Westerlo vs. Lokeren which was rescheduled to February 16, between matchdays 26 and 27.^[49]
• Matchday 22: With a lot of roads still slippery in the south and east of Belgium, two more matches are cancelled: Standard vs. Mechelen of 29 December^[56] and Sint-Truiden vs. Cercle Brugge of 30 December.^[57] Both matches have been rescheduled to be played between matchdays 27 and 28, on 26 and 27 February respectively.^[49]

Last updated: 20 March 2011
Source: soccerassociation.com

Results

Updated to games played on 20 March 2011.
Source: Soccerway
1 ^{^} The home team is listed in the left-hand column.
² Match originally awarded to Cercle Brugge as a 0-5 victory, as Charleroi did not provide proper playing conditions. Later this decision was undone after appeal from Charleroi.
Colours: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

Championship Playoff

The points obtained during the regular season will be halved (and rounded up) before the start of the playoff. As a result, the teams started with the following points before the playoff: Anderlecht 33 points, Genk 32, Gent 29, Club Brugge 27, Lokeren 25 and Standard 25. In the event of ties at the end of the playoffs, the half point will be deducted if it was added. Anderlecht, Gent, Club Brugge and Standard received this type of bonus due to rounding and will thus always be ranked below Genk and Lokeren in the event of ties.

Playoff table

Source: ^[58]
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) points after deduction of (possible) half points added due to rounding; 3) number of wins; 4) goal difference; 5) number of goals scored; 6) number of away goals scored; 7) number of away wins
(C) = Champion; (R) = Relegated; (P) = Promoted; (E) = Eliminated; (O) = Play-off winner; (A) = Advances to a further round.
Only applicable when the season is not finished:
(Q) = Qualified to the phase of tournament indicated; (TQ) = Qualified to tournament, but not yet to the particular phase indicated; (RQ) = Qualified to the relegation tournament indicated; (DQ) = Disqualified from tournament.

Positions by round

Below the positions per round are shown. As teams did not all start with an equal amount of points, the initial pre-playoffs positions are also given.

Source: soccerassociation.com

Results

Source:
1 ^{^} The home team is listed in the left-hand column.
Colours: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

Europa League Playoff

Mechelen, Westerlo, Cercle Brugge, Kortrijk, Zulte-Waregem, Sint-Truiden, Germinal Beerschot and Lierse qualified for the Europa League Playoffs.

Group A

Group B

Europa League playoff final

The winners of both playoff groups competed in a two-legged match. The winners on aggregate than will compete in another match (called Testmatch) against a team from the championship playoff (see below). If both teams are tied after two matches, the away goals rule will be applied. Should both teams still be tied afterwards, thirty minutes of extra time will be played and, if necessary, a penalty shootout will be conducted.

Westerlo v Cercle Brugge

13 May 2011 20:30 CEST

Westerlo	3 – 0	Cercle Brugge
Henrique  4', 55' Ngolok  64'	Report

Het Kuipje, Westerlo Referee: Luc Wouters

Cercle Brugge v Westerlo

16 May 2011 20:30 CEST

Cercle Brugge	2 – 2	Westerlo
D'Haene  59' Iachtchouk  68'		Chávez  33' Annab  90'

Jan Breydel Stadium, Brugge

Westerlo won 5–2 on aggregate.

Testmatches Europa League

The fourth-placed team from the championship playoff and the winners of the Europa League playoff would have competed for one spot in the third qualifying round of the 2011–12 UEFA Europa League.^[59]

Before the match, both teams were already sure of qualification for European football. Westerlo because their opponent in the final of the 2010–11 Belgian Cup was Standard Liège, who were already qualified for the 2011–12 UEFA Champions League. Club Brugge because of their league position (4th). As a result, both teams agreed to drop the testmatches regardless of the result of the Belgian Cup final:

• Because Standard won the Belgian cup, Anderlecht will enter the Play-off round and Westerlo agreed to start in the Second qualifying round, giving Club Brugge the ticket to the Third qualifying round.

Relegation Playoff

The teams finishing in the last two positions play each other 5 times. The team ending in 15th position starts with a three-point bonus and has three home matches.

Source: ^[58]
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head points; 3) head-to-head goal difference; 4) head-to-head goals scored; 5) goal difference; 6) number of goals scored
(C) = Champion; (R) = Relegated; (P) = Promoted; (E) = Eliminated; (O) = Play-off winner; (A) = Advances to a further round.
Only applicable when the season is not finished:
(Q) = Qualified to the phase of tournament indicated; (TQ) = Qualified to tournament, but not yet to the particular phase indicated; (RQ) = Qualified to the relegation tournament indicated; (DQ) = Disqualified from tournament.
Head-to-Head: used when head-to-head record is used to rank tied teams.

Source:
1 ^{^} The home team is listed in the left-hand column.
² Match not played as Charleroi could no longer overtake Eupen in the standings
Colours: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

Top goalscorers

In contrary to the previous season, which was the inaugural season with playoffs, the goals scored during the playoffs are valid to determine the league top scorer. As a result, Jelle Vossen, who was leading at the end of the regular season with 17 goals, still missed out on the top scorers' trophy.

Source: sporza.be and Sport.be (Dutch)

Rank	Player	Club	Goals
1	Ivan Perišić	Club Brugge	22
2	Jelle Vossen	Genk	20
3	Paulo Henrique	Westerlo	18
4	Romelu Lukaku	Anderlecht	16
5	Marvin Ogunjimi	Genk	15
	Ronald Vargas	Club Brugge	15
7	Elyaniv Barda	Genk	14
8	Mehdi Carcela	Standard Liège	13
	Julien Gorius	Mechelen	13
10	Habib Habibou	Zulte Waregem	12

Season statistics

Scoring

• Fastest goal in a match: 19 seconds - Marvin Ogunjimi for Genk against Standard Liège (18 October 2010)
• Goal scored at the latest point in a match: 90+6 minutes – Axel Witsel for Standard Liège against Kortrijk (17 December 2010).
• Winning goal scored at the latest point in a match: 90+5 minutes – Adnan Čustović for Germinal Beerschot against Charleroi (11 September 2010).
• Widest winning margin: 7 goals
  • Standard Liège 7-0 Lierse (27 November 2010).
• Most goals in a match by one team: 7 goals
  • Standard Liège 7-0 Lierse (27 November 2010).
  • Westerlo 7-1 Zulte Waregem (7 May 2011).
• Most goals in one half: 6 goals
  • Gent 4-4 Westerlo (2-0 at half-time) (20 November 2010).
  • Club Brugge 4-3 Westerlo (3-3 at half-time) (5 December 2010).
• Most goals in one half by a single team: 4 goals
  • Anderlecht 4-1 Eupen (0-1 at half-time) (31 July 2010).
  • Club Brugge 4-1 Sint-Truiden (4-1 at half-time) (7 August 2010).
  • Genk 5-0 Charleroi (4-0 at half-time) (15 August 2010).
  • Anderlecht 5-0 Mechelen (1-0 at half-time) (26 September 2010).
  • Standard Liège 5-1 Anderlecht (1-0 at half-time) (3 October 2010).
  • Eupen 6-0 Sint-Truiden (4-0 at half-time) (16 October 2010).
  • Gent 4-4 Westerlo (2-0 at half-time) (20 November 2010).
  • Standard Liège 7-0 Lierse (3-0 at half-time) (27 November 2010).
  • Anderlecht 4-1 Charleroi (0-1 at half-time) (27 November 2010).
  • Genk 5-1 Eupen (1-0 at half-time) (11 December 2010).
  • Anderlecht 6-0 Lierse (2-0 at half-time) (26 December 2010).
  • Eupen 4-2 Charleroi (0-2 at half-time) (16 April 2011).
  • Westerlo 7-1 Zulte Waregem (4-0 at half-time) (7 May 2011).
• Most goals in a match by one player: 4 goals
  • Ivan Perišić for Club Brugge against Charleroi (29 December 2010).

Discipline

• Card given at latest point in a game: Victor Wanyama (yellow) at 90+9 minutes for Germinal Beerschot against Charleroi (10 September 2010).
• Most yellow cards in a single match: 10 - Standard Liège 3-3 Lokeren: 6 for Standard (Bolat, Pocognoli, Defour, Carcela, Witsel and Grozav), 4 for Lokeren (El Mouataz, Taravel, De Ceulaer and Leko) (14 August 2010)

See also

• List of Belgian football transfers summer 2010

References