STEPHEN BRANDT RECALLS WHEN BELGIUM FOOTBALL PUNCHED ABOVE ITS WEIGHT...

BELGIUM have a top team now, but they were no slouches on the club and international scene in the late 70s and early 80s. Anderlecht shone in the Cup Winners’ Cup between 1976 to 1978, winning two of the three finals they appeared in.
Club Brugge also enjoyed a notable period under Ernst Happel, who became manager in 1974. The Austrian ushered in an era of great success, winning three league titles and a domestic cup in his four-year reign as well as making them a presence on the European stage.
It wasn’t onl...