Snow fun, you say? Not in Mamburg. A non-playable field resulted in a match that ended in danger to life and limb. Even half an hour before kick-off, Bert Pott doubted that the match could be held: the referee gave the go-ahead anyway. Not because of ideal conditions, but because of the crowding on the calendar. Charleroi skated for the best (1-0) and is one point behind Club Brugge and Antwerp.
Feel free to pour wine, and sit for a while. An hour before the match, there was a few centimeters of snow in the Stade du Pays, and there was still no field heating under the stadium: everything initially indicated a cancellation. At 8.15pm, reference Bert Put decided to give him a chance after all. With a busy calendar in mind, that might sound logical, but this decision was anything but a liability. With a ball stuck in the snow and players in constant danger of injury, we can barely see the football. Oddly enough, the bot didn’t find the field the biggest problem, but rather the lines. They got a new coat of lime (red) before kick-off. Add an orange ball and you’re done. Strange decision, but the show has to go on, right?
Nicholson stopped by Hubert and 3D line
Friday night’s noble ball game was more than ever a game of chance: Once the leather bounced in the right direction, we had chances. Before the break, this mainly happened to Charleroi. Hubert once kicked next to the ball in white gunpowder, but Golizadeh hesitated too long. Nicholson also came close to scoring four times. Three times Hubert got in the way. The fourth time the ball went into the net, but the Jamaican was offside. VAR wanted to take a look just to make sure: That call lasted for minutes. Reason? You guessed it: It’s hard to draw a 3D line in the snow. It turned out to be in vain: the assistant referee’s decision was correct, so the score remained 0-0 in the first half. And KVO in particular has to be satisfied with that.
The second season at the Mamburg ice rink brought more of the same: Charleroi continued to spread the odds. Golizadeh twice saw a great opportunity not to enter, even in two urgent stops it did not matter if the KVO had flags. The zebras almost regretted it: suddenly the KVO came, beeping. First Capone forced Coffey to display a long shot, then Ambrose scored from a diagonal angle on Charleroi’s goal. Bätzner even hit the post with a shovel fired from a distance of 30 metres: all in vain. The longer the game, the thicker the carpet on the playing field. Almost all the balls were thrown and the lines faded: it didn’t seem to matter. However, we still got a (deserved) winner.
tip of the club and antwerp
In the end, Charleroi took the lead and scored in the 81st minute. Beselli played well inside the penalty area and hit a cross from the left flanked by Hubert. We no longer had an answer from KV Oostende: The physical and mental damage was very heavy after a very difficult match with a heavy blow at the end. It was the ultimate snow fun for Charleroi: The Zebras continued their momentum and consolidated their fourth place. Club Brugge and Antwerp are still one point ahead, and Anderlecht is already four units behind. Will Charleroi challenge the big teams in the qualifiers champions again this season? It would be nothing anyway.
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