Toby Alderweireld scored a goal in the 94th minute to give Royal Antwerp their first league title since 1957
Toby Alderweireld scores a FANTASTIC goal in the 94th minute to help hometown club Royal Antwerp win their first league title since 1957
- Toby Alderweireld scored a stunning equalizer for Royal Antwerp in the 94th minute
- The goal meant Antwerp edged out Genk and Union Saint-Gilloise in the title
- It was the first title for Antwerpen – Alderweireld’s home club – since 1957
Toby Alderweireld scored a stunning last-minute goal to help Royal Antwerp win their first league title since 1957.
The former Tottenham defender, who joined his hometown club last summer, equalized from outside the box in the 94th minute to save Antwerp in a 2-2 draw against title rivals Genk.
After a long ball was played forward, the ball was laid down for Alderweireld, who fired into the top left corner, causing wild cheers from his team-mates.
As he turned away, he ran across the pitch to the Antwerp fans’ quarters while being pursued by his team-mates and the club’s coaching staff, causing an uproar in the group.
A dramatic end to the season, the goal meant Antwerp edged both Genk and Union Saint-Gilloise by just a point to win the Belgian championship title (Jupiler Pro League) for the first time in 66 years.
Former Tottenham defender Toby Alderweireld struck an impressive goal in the 94th minute and helped Royal Antwerp to their first league title since 1957
Genk led the game 2-1 and if they had kept the three points they would have won the title.
Union St-Gilloise, meanwhile, were on pole position to become champions but fell out towards the end of the season, failing to win their last three games, including a 3-1 defeat by outgoing champions Club Brugge on Sunday.
The goal was Alderweireld’s seventh goal of the season. The 34-year-old, who left Spurs in 2021 to join Qatari side Al-Duhail, has become a key player for Mark van Bommel’s side.
Alderweireld joined the club on a three-year deal last July after always saying he wanted to play for Antwerp at some point in his career as he was born in the Belgian city.
Having joined Ajax Amsterdam as a youngster, he had never played football in his home country but lived up to his promise and more by helping Antwerp emerge victorious from a thrilling three-way battle for the championship.
The former Belgium international, who retired from international football after his country’s dismal World Cup season, even has a tattoo of Antwerp Cathedral on his arm.
Antwerp will now play in the Champions League for the first time since the 1957/58 season – a year after they won the historic last league title.