There was hardly any talk about the Conference League on Wednesday. The return of Simon Mignolet, Igor Thiago or Antonio Nusa also turned out to be a footnote. The future of coach Ronny Deila remains the hottest issue at Club Brugge: on the eve of the return match against Molde, the Norwegian bit back firmly.
“The board has to decide whether they think it’s good enough or not. I remain calm,” Ronny Deila noted. “If you want to change coaches, do so. But then they have to start all over again. They also tried that here three times last season.”
Deila prefaced his dismissal and wanted to outline that his departure will not solve Club Brugge’s problems. He thinks there is too much focus on his person.
“I also look beyond the results,” Deila said in his will. “We were never outplayed this season, had to play a huge number of matches and were unlucky with injuries. I call those reasons, others call them excuses. In the meantime, we sold our top scorer: he has been struggling with injuries ever since. And there is indeed progress in this group. Often you only really start winning prizes from the second season onwards. That was also the case at my previous clubs. I believe in growth and will fight to the bitter end. If the board decides otherwise, I will accept it.”
And then sum up the facts yourself. “We are twenty points behind Union: that is too much. We were also eliminated in the semi-final of the cup by the leader: that can happen. Don’t forget last season: when I arrived here, the club was in worse shape than it is now. Of course I know that the results have to be better. That’s why I’m happy that my group is showing character, that they want to strike back. By the way, we already did that against OH Leuven. My first concern? That match against Molde, our chance at a European quarter-final. I’m really looking forward to it.”
Half empty stadium
If things go wrong, Deila will almost certainly be in the ejection seat. Then Club has failed: on paper the Norwegians are Club Brugge’s inferiors.
“If we go out, that’s not enough of us. We are a better team than Molde,” Deila confirmed. “But nowadays you can see everything in black. I’m not like that: we want to go to the next round. You don’t get the chance to reach a quarter-final every season: we will discuss this later.”
The fans seem to have missed this, because the stadium is not even half full on Thursday. Deila doesn’t let it get to his heart. “That doesn’t matter: there were fewer people against Besiktas, but the atmosphere was great. We are now going to ensure that by showing it on the field.”
Ronny Deila joined Club Brugge last summer after one year in Standard. Club bought out his current contract with Standard for an estimated 2 million euros. He signed a three-year contract, but there is a good chance that it will end after one season. Last season, Club Brugge had three different head coaches, with Carl Hoefkens, the Englishman Scott Parker, and interim coach Rik De Mil.
