Familiar faces return to haunt Gent

KAA Gent were denied a third Belgian Cup victory as former players Mbark Boussoufa and Guillaume Gillet turned a 2-1 deficit into a 3-2 win for RSC Anderlecht.

Foley opener
Anderlecht claimed their ninth Belgian Cup at Brussels' Roi Badouin Stadium in a dramatic match in which Gent took the lead on two occassions. There were just six minutes on the clock when Dominic Foley opened the scoring but the first advantage did not last long as Jan Polák deviated an Olivier Deschacht cross past goalkeeper Bojan Jorgacevic a minute later to restore parity.

Turning point
Adekanmi Olufade edged Gent in front for the second time after 33 minutes, tricking two defenders before finishing with a shot that took a slight touch off Anderlecht defender Jelle Van Damme to surprise goalkeeper Silvio Proto. The game turned on 70 minutes, though, when Boussoufa headed in a Thomas Chatelle cross to make it 2-2, and moments later Gillet finished off a fine move involving Ahmed Hassan and Boussoufa to seal the trophy.

European places
Anderlecht, who celebrate their centenary on 27 May, were already certain of playing in UEFA Champions League qualifying next season after a second-place finish in the Eerste Klasse, while Gent will now enter the UEFA Cup.