In 2016, Mbark Boussoufa returned to the Pro League, with Ghent. Anderlecht could, however, have brought back their former player a few months earlier.
The return ofMbark Boussoufa in Anderlecht would have excited Lotto Park and almost happened: “Besnik Hasi called me personally. They wanted to bring me back. But I still had a contract at Lokomotiv Moscow, where I was satisfied and performing well. My salary there -bas was excellent, and the club was satisfied with my performances” explains Boussoufa to the MIDMID podcast.
Herman Van Holsbeeck, then sporting director of Anderlecht, indicated that the club had a solution for the salary Boussoufa earned in Moscow: “I came to Anderlecht for a discussion. They said they could pay my salary, which which would mean that I would not lose anything by changing clubs. I was going to present the proposal to Lokomotiv, to whom Anderlecht wanted to pay three to four million euros as transfer compensation.
Boussoufa presented the plan to the president of Lokomotiv, who showed interest: “She replied that my departure actually fixed things because of the rules of Financial Fair Play.”
Van Holsbeeck said everything was in order except one thing…
When Anderlecht was close to sealing the deal, negotiations suddenly went sour. “Anderlecht started playing. They knew Lokomotiv wanted to let me go. Eventually an agreement was reached and I went to Brussels. Van Holsbeeck said everything was in order, but there was one problem: only the club would have an option to extend my contract, not both parties as agreed.”
Unacceptable for Boussoufa: “The day I’m going to sign with you, are you telling me that? Van Holsbeeck said that it wasn’t his responsibility. But for me, it was simple: either you keep your word, or it doesn’t matter. “It’s not worth it.”
The transfer therefore failed: “I then took the flight back to Moscow,” concludes Boussoufa. “When I got there, Anderlecht held a press conference and blamed me for the failure of the negotiations. The president immediately sent me on reserve for six months. But I never blamed Anderlecht. I know how the game works.”
