Sportvereniging Red Star Aalst: Season 116 Preview

Expectations are higher than they have been for a long time at Aalststadion as Sportvereniging Red Star Aalst enter their 14th season in the Belgian Premier League. After a trio of 4th place league finishes, the club have brought in a new staff, added players, and have a clear goal of competing for their first league title, and the first to the city of Aalst since S29.

Manager Modraed Engham has not backed down from the club's high expectations in his first season in the top job. "Our goal for this season is very clear, and that is to be competitive" said Engham during a post-match press conference for the club's exhibition win over Uxbridge Town AFC. "We want to be an aggressive, forward thinking team that will overwhelm our opposition, while maintaining structure. Our system is going to be a tough one to implement, but I believe that we have the players here to have great success. And I am very much looking forward to seeing how they approach the challenges that lay ahead."

The expected starting 11 for the club as the season approaches looks like this:

In goal, Jacques Mathieu will hope to have another sterling season as he has become one of the consensus best goalkeepers in the world. Josh Diez joins the back four moving from the midfield to a wingback role this season, while Weis, Simon, and Pirotte continue to command a young and developing back line. The midfield trio of Wein, Kirk, and Morales should show a solid mix of youthful energy and veteran experience. Adonis Waldgrave will move into more of a winger role in his second BPL season, as the team's key acquisition Deontre Dunstan mans the other wing. Claudie Huntington will hope to build on his personal best 43 goal campaign from a year ago as he captains this ambitious club.

Red Star opens the season hosting Sworders FC at Aalststadion later this week.

Dunstan Joins Aalst

There are few stars in football bigger than American forward Deontre Dunstan, and Sportvereniging Red Star Aalst has stunned the football world by acquiring him. The price was steep as Red Star reportedly paid a club record $2,000,000 (approximately €1,700,000) transfer fee to American powerhouse Long Beach Lions. The 33 year old Dunstan has spent his whole professional career with the Lions, and in his 15 seasons he played 436 league matches scoring 485 goals, including a 52 goal campaign a year ago.

Thousands of excited Aalst fans gathered at the club's training facilities today for Deontre Dunstan's introductory press event. He showed off his brand new #10 red and black shirt, and briefly addressed the crowd. "It is great to be here in Aalst in front of so many fans who appreciate my greatness" said Dunstan, pointing out to the gathered crowd. "There are some other talented players in Belgium, but I am ready to show them that Deontre and Red Star are here to win. I hope that they are prepared as well. It's going to be very fun."

Manager Modraed Engham reiterated the club's commitment to success in his address to the gathered fans and media. "We want to make bold steps towards competing with the best that the BPL has to offer. I think this is a move that proves how serious we are towards that goal. The work is still to come, but acquiring quality players and building a quality team is what we are all about here. I look forward to seeing Deontre at training, adding his talents to our own."

The club shop almost immediately sold out of Dunstan-branded merchandise, but is expected to have more prepared in advance of the club's exhibition matches to come.

Red Star Coaching Staff Announced

Red Star Aalst announced via a press release the other key members of new manager Modraed Engham's coaching staff. The biggest name among them was Ruerd Cuelemans who was named the assistant manager. Cuelemans, 53, was the manager of fellow BPL club Wonderkid Sports Authority for most of the past three seasons. Amidst a bankruptcy scare, The Rams fell from title contenders to a mid-table side, and Cuelemans was sacked from the manager role in this middle of last season.

Two former Aalst players were named in the other key coaching spots as Bridge Fisher and Archibald Friedland are set to become the first team coach and goalkeeping coach respectively. The 35 year old Fisher was a defender for Red Star for 11 seasons before retiring last year. He spent last season on Alco Moreau's staff with Aalst working as a defensive assistant. Friedland, 34, was Red Star's starting goalkeeper for many years also serving as the club's first captain. He joins the club in his first coaching role after taking a year away from football last year.

Engham Introduced as New Red Star Manager

The new manager of Sportvereniging Red Star Aalst is Modraed Engham. Engham served as the team's first team coach last season under departing manager Alco Moreau. At only 29 years old, he becomes the youngest manager in the history of the Belgian Premier League. He had been a player for the club before suffering a career ending ankle injury at only 19 years of age, and then rejoined Aalst two years later in a minor coaching role, and now becomes  the 3rd ever manager of Red Star Aalst.

Engham was a surprising choice to many given his youth and lack of managerial experience, but at this introductory press conference, club president Simon Henri-Lebrun explained the decision. "The biggest driver to wanting him was continuity in our organization" said Lebrun. "Modraed has been working at Aalst diligently for years and has gained a reputation among the players and other staff as someone who has been easy to work with and is incredibly knowledgeable about the game. He gets along well with the people here and has been helping players develop while in his various roles. He is the type of person that we do not wish to lose to another team, and we feel that the time was now to give him this chance."

When asked if he felt lucky to be able to be in this new role, Engham was adamant that good fortune had little to do with it. "I'm thankful to have this job certainly, and thankful at the opportunities that I have received in Aalst, but it doesn't feel like luck. After my injury, I decided fairly quickly that I wasn't done with football and wanted to find a career in this sport. I have poured my heart into coaching and have grown under the tutelage of some excellent coaches. I do feel like I have seized upon a moment here, and I intend to push forward in this new role, helping the players here seize the opportunities that they have."

Expectations will be high going into next season, and the hope will be that Red Star can grow into a title contender in the coming years. They are betting on their new manager being a key component of that.

Moreau Out as Aalst Manager

Sportvereniging Red Star Aalst has fired manager Alco Moreau after 3 years in that role with the club. The 52 year old Moreau had previously served as first team coach for long-time manager Rickard Oberlander before being promoted to the top job when Oberlander retired. In his 3 seasons as manager, Moreau guided Aalst to a 82-9-21 record, never finishing in the top 3 in the BPL table.

Aalst just wrapped up their season with a 1-0 win away at Liege Union FC to end the year in 4th place for the second consecutive year.

Red Star Rounds Out Roster in Advance of Training Camp

With training camp set to open for Sportvereniging Red Star Aalst in the coming days, the club has finalized their roster with the addition of a few new free agents. The new additions are:

• Felipe Wynne - F - USA - 25 y/o
• Modraed Engham - M - ENG - 18 y/o
  
• Marijtie-Jans Etienne - M - BEL - 30 y/o
  
• Sigizo Lievens - D - BEL - 30 y/o

Capable American striker Felipe Wynne joins Aalst on a 4 year deal hoping to add strength to a unit that really failed to score regularly last season. The 25 year old spent the last two seasons at American league club Brownwood Lions scoring 46 goals in 72 league matches.

Perhaps the highest profile signing of the offseason for Red Star was that of English teenage phenom Modraed Engham. The 18 year old midfielder was the top performer for England's U18 team last year and joins his new team on a 5 year deal. Engham's ability to receive and move the ball to teammates, his set piece prowess, and his awareness on both sides of the ball make him a formidable prospect that Aalst fans are hoping is worthy of his reported $475,000 annual salary.

Marijtie-Jans Etienne continues his journeyman career this season signing a 1 year contract with Aalst. The 30 year old Belgian midfielder has 42 goals in 278 BPL matches over an 8 year career at the top level of Belgian football.

After starting his career in England, defender Sigizo Lievens has also settled into a journeyman career in his native Belgium. At 30 years old has 210 BPL appearances, but has impressively scored 50 goals using his 6'3 frame and impressive ball heading prowess.

In a recent interview, manager Rickard Oberlander called his new signings 'satisfactory' and stressed the need for everyone to come together in training to be prepared for the year ahead. "The time has once again come for us to move from being a bunch of athletes and becoming a proper team" said Oberlander. "We are not a fancy new team anymore. People expect results, and I have maybe the highest expectations here. Our goal is to begin to show our ability to compete at the top level. That's where we need to reach to this season."

The season preview for Aalst will be released as the season approaches in around a month's time.

Several New Players Join Aalst in Free Agency

As expected, Red Star had an incredibly busy start to the free agency period. The club has already added 8 new players, and is expected to add even more in the coming weeks. The new signings are:

• Owen Lewey - D - USA - 30 y/o
• Isham Barry - M - USA - 26 y/o
• Leonardo Lippmann - M - GER - 22 y/o
• Ernst Burchard - M - GER - 18 y/o 
• Isaak Smet - D - BEL - 27 y/o
• Friedrick Acker - D - GER - 18 y/o
• Gaele Leemans - F - BEL - 28 y/o
• Hillegont Raes - GK - BEL - 27 y/o

American defender Owen Lewey brings his wealth of experience in his native USA, signing a 2 year deal with Aalst. In 10 seasons, the 30 year old Lewey has 305 league matches played scoring 10 goals. He spent the last 3 years with Baltimore FC, finishing in 4th place in the league each year.

Fellow American Isham Barry also joins from the American top league, having spent the last 3 seasons playing there for Jets FC and Dionysus FC, scoring 23 goals in 108 matches. The 26 year old midfielder returns to Belgium after beginning his pro career at Super Eagles of Brussels FC, failing to garner significant playing time with that club. Barry signed a 3 year deal with Red Star, and will challenge for a starting role in the midfield.

22 year old midfielder Leonardo Lippmann has led a surprisingly journeyman career in his native Germany for his young age. Over 4 German league seasons, he scored 18 goals in 134 league matches. Aalst signed Lippmann to a 5 year contract.

German teenager Ernst Burchard signed his first professional contract, a five year deal with Aalst to play on the team as a midfielder. The 18 year old showed flashes in his U18 career as a skilled scorer from both the midfield and forward positions, as well as a strong free kick taker.

Belgian defender Isaak Smet joins Red Star on a 2 year contract bringing his four seasons of BPL experience with him to Aalst. The 27 year old scored 19 goals in 124 league matches while playing mostly as a wing defender.

A second member of Germany's U18 team last season, defender Friedrick Acker, also signed a 5 year deal with Red Star. The 18 year old Acker proved himself to be a thoughtful defender last season, with a particular skill at clearing the ball a great distance out of impending danger.

Veteran Belgian striker Gaele Leemans signed a 1 year deal to join Red Star in a depth role up front. The 28 year old spent the last 2 of his 9 career BPL seasons playing for Bill FC, where he had 19 and 21 goal seasons in league play.

Aalst also added a veteran to play as their backup goalkeeper, adding Hillegont Raes on a 2 year deal. The 27 year old Belgian has 6 years of BPL experience, most recently with Hampton SC where he started 30 league matches.

Signings are expected to continue as the team is fully assembled for training camp in just over a week's time.