1. Deniz Undav – Stuttgart
“When he arrived at Union in D1B, he had difficulty getting the machine going during the first weeks. Everyone was talking about Vanzeir who was on fire, but I kept telling everyone that Undav was much stronger All things considered, I compared him to Karim Benzema with his ability to use his body in a false number 9 role thanks to his big vista. In the locker room, he was funny and very accessible. internship on his very first day at the Union At the very beginning, he didn’t talk to anyone and stayed in his corner, after ten minutes, he sang in front of everyone in German while celebrating with his big arms. (smile). I understood at that moment that he was going to be a direct match with the Union thanks to his crazy side.”
gullAfter ten minutes, I understood that it was going to match with Undav.
2. Kaoru Mitoma – Brighton
“He was the player who was most far above the rest at the Union. Even if he wasn’t always consistent, he brought us so much in such a short time. When he accelerated, some They said it’s because the level of the Pro League was too low… but he’s now doing the same thing in the Premier League. He really has that little something extra that will make him a great player. hat-trick in 45 minutes against Seraing: after this match, he took on a whole new dimension and realized his potential. In the locker room, he was quite reserved with a very respectful Japanese mentality. He showed everyone that. “Playing for the Union before going to Brighton was the right idea.”
3. Ismael Kandouss – Al-Orobah
“We both worked in our youth without having gone through a training center. We arrived at the Union together and we left the club together. I am very happy with his success because he never gave up. When he arrived in Belgium, he was very far from his current level but I felt that he was going to explode with him but also Puertas and Selemani. all my friends are in Saudi ArabiaI will have to join them (smile). It’s not really part of my plans to go there but you never know how it turns out in football.”
4. Cameron Puertas – Al-Qadsiah
“I could already see that he had everything to succeed despite his short playing time at Union. He reminded me of myself when I was younger, with his grinta, and was one of the best in training. I knew that He was going to explode the day his time came but I didn’t expect him to be so strong last season. He’s one of the most complete players I’ve played with. Saudi Arabia? Despite what has been said, he has not received that many offers this summer. He has chosen a club which has the project of being one of the best in its championship in the short term. in everyone’s eyes, he went for the money but I understand his choice and I respect it.”
5. Victor Boniface – Bayer Leverkusen
“We were all aware of his potential and his extraordinary physical abilities. But from there to him exploding so quickly in the Bundesliga… Some thought he wasn’t going to make it outside of Belgium but he quickly made everyone agree. He is the best example showing that everything we have built at the Union has been built with quality players. He can be one of the best attackers in the world in the future. he proved his qualities in the Europa League with us and he continues to do well in the Champions League. I wish him to one day be part of the top 3 attackers, but I still see him a little behind players like Mbappé or Haaland in two. or three years.”
6. Loïc Lapoussin – Union Saint-Gilloise
“I closely followed his sidelining and that saddened me greatly. Even if I don’t have all the ins and outs, these are not the kinds of decisions that the Union I knew made. His recent return shows that management regretted its choice. He has the qualities of a great player but extra-sporting problems prevent him from exploding at the very high level. With him, I have millions of anecdotes because he’s such a bon vivant (laughs). I especially remember his lateness or forgetting his training, but he was such a nice person that we couldn’t blame him. He came to see me saying “sorry capi” with his little smile and it was forgiven. Without his madness, which is also his weakness, he would not be as strong.”
gullIn training, Burgess could tell the opposing striker that he was rubbish.
7. Christian Burgess – Union Saint-Gilloise
“He continues to be hated by all his opponents? He’s sick (laughs). He was also like that with us in training, he became horrible as soon as he got on the pitch. When his team lost in a small game, he began to destabilize the attacker by telling him that he was bad and that he didn’t know how to put one foot in front of the other. When he won a little match, he would clear the ball and stick out his tongue and shout ‘aaaaah’. That’s his Zlatan side, he gets hated by everyone on the pitch but he’s super nice off it. I called him the ideal son-in-law: he’s vegan, he has beautiful long hair and he helps migrants (smile). We will never change him, his bad boy side is his strength. I still laugh at him when I watch Union matches.”
8. Sébastien Pocognoli – Union Saint-Gilloise
“I remember his very first training at Union: we were playing a possession, he was a joker in the middle and he had such technical quality that I couldn’t believe he was a left back. He was at comfortable with the ball like a midfielder… but not so much as to take my place (laughs). I was not surprised that he became the Union coach because he has the profile that the club is looking for. Its difficult beginnings show that it is not easy, what we had achieved. Some said that we could put any coach in given the quality of the players but from Mazzù to Blessin via Geraerts, everyone really did an extraordinary job.”
gullIn D1B, Mazzù told me that there wasn’t enough love in the group.
9. Felice Mazzù – Saint-Trond
“I’m glad he bounced back in Sint-Truiden which will bring him stability. The higher you go to big clubs, the less affection there is and Felice needs love to train well. He had some at Union and less at Anderlecht. I remember a defeat against RWDM at the very start of the season in D1B. He asks me how the group is doing and I tell him that everything is going pretty well. He answers me: ‘There isn’t enough love in this team. On Wednesday after training, you all stay at the training center because I want there to be more love between you.’ We organized a poker evening with pizzas delivered and we all stayed there to sleep. After that, we broke all records. It was a real trigger in the success of the Union.”
10. Teddy Teuma – Reims
“Many thought that I had gone and lost myself in Belgium but I returned to France through the front door, being stronger than before. I was keen to be recognized for my true worth in my country of origin I experienced this as revenge. I was able to make the name ‘Teuma’ known in Belgium and now in Ligue 1. Reims wanted to give me the same status as at the Union by becoming the hub, captain. and number 10. This season, they gave me the keys to the team so it’s up to me to push the club as high as possible and why not to Europe like with the Union?
