Mats Rits must have been surprised when Olivier Renard became sporting director at Anderlecht. The two men rubbed shoulders in Mechelen.
When Mats Rits was still playing in Mechelen, there was some tension with Olivier Renard. It all revolved around the length of his contract.
“At the beginning, I was able to sign at the club for three years, but when Renard became sporting director, they only wanted me for one year,” he remembers in Het Nieuwsblad.
Tensions eased
“There was some resentment at the time, but it was resolved fairly quickly and the three-year contract was still signed. Now, it’s no longer a problem” reassures the Anderlecht midfielder.
The disagreement was no less sharp: Olivier Renard had declared that Rits’ level was disappointing given the personal ambition with which he arrived.
“Everyone is allowed to have their opinion. I was only 19 years old then. In fact, it is only from the age of 22 that you manage to reach a constant level over thirty matches. I had just come from Ajax and they thought I was going to fix it,” Rits continued. “But football there was different. I played in a dominant team and the Dutch competition was less closed.”
