“Disappointment. Discontent. A lack of self-respect.”
At KRC Genk they reacted angry last Friday because national coach Domenico Tedesco had ignored the league leader’s players in his first selection.
Technical director and ex-Genk coach Frank Vercauteren reacted to Genk’s disappointment today.
“There are always reasons to comment,” says Vercauteren. “And you can look at everything through a different lens. We understand that.”
“But you always have to respect the coach’s choice. Everything happened in consultation with each other and I support the selection 200 percent.”
Why did Mike Trésor and Bryan Heynen fall by the wayside? “We followed them and assessed them. But we had to make difficult choices and choosing means losing. Moreover, we also opted for a small selection (of 24 players).”
Genk can continue to cherish hope. “It is certainly not the case that we write off those players. Who knows, they may be called up in the next campaign”, Vercauteren keeps the door open.
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Frank Vercauteren is willing to discuss the matter with Genk. “We have not had any contact yet, but that is the intention,” says Vercauteren.
“We will definitely be in touch to discuss those matters,” the TD assures.
“Once the emotions and frustrations have subsided, we can communicate in a normal way.”
So it was not national coach Domenico Tedesco but the technical director who spoke to the press today.
Tedesco wanted to take the time today to speak with the called up players.
“Soon I will also briefly address the players myself,” says Vercauteren. “We will then discuss the broad outlines and the objectives.”
How are the honeymoon weeks going between Vercauteren and the new national coach? “I have been able to talk to Tedesco for hours during our many plane trips in recent weeks. That was very interesting.”
“We discussed how to guide a team and how to communicate humanely.”
Things are going well between Vercauteren and Tedesco. “Through those many conversations I got to know Domenico well. We are on the same wavelength in many areas,” he assures.