Standard Liege Belgian Pro League 2025/2026 Preview | OneFootball

Overview:

Once a major force in Belgian football, financial mismanagement has seen the success slowly drift away from Standard Liege in recent years. Ivan Leko has gone, moving to Gent to save the club some wages but deny it a quality head coach. Leko overachieved with a side bereft of any real quality going forward. This year, the returning Mircea Rednic certainly has more quality at his disposal, on paper at least, but does he have the coaching nous to get the best out of it?

Transfers in: Rafiki Said (Troyes), Dennis Eckert (Union St Gilloise), Marco Ilaimaharitra (Kortrijk), Josue Homawoo (Dinamo Bucaresti), Lucas Pirard (Kortrijk), Thomas Henry (Hellas Verona), Casper Nielsen (Club Brugge), Nayel Mehssatou (Kortrijk), Tobias Mohr (Schalke 04), Adnane Abid (Patro Eisden)

Transfers out: Tom Poitoux (Maastricht), Brahim Ghalidi (NAC Breda), Ilay Camara (Anderlecht)

Key player: Casper Nielsen

During his time at Union, Nielsen was a key cog in their rise to the top flight and title challenge. During his first season with Club Brugge he managed to grab nine goals, but injuries and new signings saw him fall down the pecking order. At 31, the player still has plenty to give and Standard Liege will be hoping he can do it with them. Nielsen should be one of the first names on the Standard Liege team sheet and will be key in driving the side this season.

Young player to watch: Adnane Abid

21-year-old Abid was fantastic for Patro Eisden last season and earned his move to Standard Liege off the back of those performances. For a side that lacked goals and creativity, fans of Standard Liege will be hoping that Abid can adapt to the top flight quickly and provide some excitement.

Transfer window needs:

The side may want another striker before the window closes, as Thomas Henry has not been firing since he left the league a few seasons ago. They’ve definitely got quality out wide and should create more chances, but pressure will be on Henry and Eckert to score. Grejohn Kyei is still there, but he was not deemed of the standard for Standard Liege last year. The side also need to work out what to do with Moussa Djenepo, as it benefits no one to keep him and not play him. Could he be an x factor if he does stay?

GBeNeFN | Ben Jackson