A sunny Friday evening. Football back at Fir Park. Mrs Baillie’s Bar looking immaculate. The season is so nearly back. And a tough test against Belgian opposition, who have vast European pedigree and experience. Genk are frequently in the European picture, having played in the Champions League in recent times, and last season finding themselves in the last 16 of the Europa League. Genk are also well known for their youth academy, having brought through the likes of Thibaut Courtois and Kevin De Bruyne. Minutes in the legs preparing us for our European opener against Havnar Bóltfelag, and a chance for us to have a first look at Alfred Johansson’s style of play, formation, and tricks up the sleeve.
However, there are still questions. For a start, the injury list means we still (and probably, Johansson hasn’t either) seen how our full strength side may look. Stepehn O’Donnell, Jordan McGhee, Paul McGinn, Johnny Koutroumbis, Emmanuel Longelo, Callum Hendry, Apostolos Stamatelopolous and Tawanda Maswanhise were all out injured. Eythor Bjørgolfsson was on the bench, but didn’t feature. Elliot Watt was also missing as his expected departure nears closer.
The positive is, the squad still performed very well all considered. The Well lined up with a few surprises still in store. Alex Paulsen made his debut as the new number 1, with Matty Connolly seemingly promoted to back-up keeper. In Paulsen, we seemed to
Member Content
Continue reading
Support independent Scottish football journalism and unlock full tactical analysis, long-form features, and advanced statistics.
£3.00/month, charged at checkout.
- Full tactical analysis & match reports
- Long-form features & interviews
- Advanced statistics & player data
- Members forum & community
Replies are closed on this article.