Konstantinos Karetsas was once the pearl of Neerpede. Anderlecht had lured him from Genk and he impressed even more than Rayane Bounida. But as his 15th birthday approached, his entourage began to doubt and eventually he returned to Genk.
Why these doubts about his future at Anderlecht? Jean Kindermans was pushed towards the exit at that moment. Kindermans was the reason why Karetsas had chosen Anderlecht, alongside his right-hand man Kevin Vermeulen, but the Neerpede manager was already in conflict with chairman Wouter Vandenhaute.
Clubs like Lille have shown interest, but also Belgian teams like Antwerp, Standard, Club Brugge and Genk have knocked on the door, reports The Newspaper . Karetsas had already been to Genk and lives near the Cegeka Arena, which made the choice of the Limburg club attractive.
Genk then presented an ambitious plan: Karetsas could make his debut with Jong Genk at the age of 15, and develop as Bilal El Khannouss’ successor thereafter. The plan appealed to the family, especially with the possibility for Konstantinos to finish his studies at the same school as Kevin De Bruyne and Thibaut Courtois.
Despite interest from major European clubs such as Manchester City, Chelsea, Juventus and Dortmund, the Karetsas family remains firm and rejects these proposals.
Anderlecht then tried one last time to retain Karetsas, but a discussion with president Vandenhaute did not convince the family. Finally, the family decided to return to Genk, where he signed his first professional contract until 2026 on January 13, 2023… and will meet Anderlecht tonight as a starter.
Related News :