Derby draw helps no one

Saturday’s crowd at Stade Achille Hammerel witnessed a sour first half-hour for the RFCUL faithful, as an injury forced Fabien Fonrose off the pitch before the guests took the lead through an incisive effort from American playmaker Evan Rotundo.

Dudelange seemed to be in control of the game, switching to a more cautious approach after their 3-1 win against Wiltz last week, where they seemed to be playing on the back foot for long periods despite a successful last-gasp comeback.

Racing had acquired their first victory of the season against a struggling Fola Esch last week, and were adamant about staying on the right track. António Gomes’ second-half effort levelled the scores on Saturday evening, and Yannick Kakoko’s crew squandered a number of opportunities late on to snatch all three points.

A resilient defensive performance from the Sky Blues ensured perennial scorer Samir Hadji had a slow day at the office, and F91 still look to be far more dependent on the Moroccan than a team of their stature should.

With FC Differdange finding a late winner of their own against Union Titus Pétange on the same day, Dudelange’s gap to first now stands at 12 points, effectively sealing the title race and putting all doubts to bed.

Racing also failed to bounce back from a sluggish start to 2025, with their first five outings yielding a single win to date. The merger club are still firmly in the picture for continental qualification thanks to some stumbles from fellow rivals Swift Hesper and Progrès Niederkorn respectively, but they must pick up form if they are to stay near the podium.

The strongest promoted teams ever?

During matchweek 19, the three newly-promoted clubs racked up a combined 7 points, with wins for Hostert and Bettembourg accompanied by a draw from Rodange against Niederkorn.

The trio also accumulated six goals between them, coming from six different scorers. Bettembourg ground out a 2-1 win against Mondercange despite finishing the game with 10 men.

US Hostert are in ninth place, two points from the top half and on the back of four consecutive victories. Bettembourg and Rodange stagnated after strong starts, but have solidified their spots in the relegation play-off, above Mondercange and Fola.

As it stands, this season is set to be by far the most consistently impressive from the promoted sides in a decade. Barring Swift Hesper’s heavily bankrolled effort to take BGL Ligue by storm, Hostert’s 8 wins and projected 30+ points by the end of the year will be amongst the strongest from a newcomer.

The last time at least three teams managed to survive their top-tier debut simultaneously was in 2013, when Jeunesse Canach finished in the top half, while Etzella Ettelbrück and Wiltz 71 stayed up by a hair’s breadth.

Two promoted sides staying in the division has not been a rare sight in general, although the picture is skewed by numerous seasons without relegations thanks to the extension to 16 teams in 2020, and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic a year later.

For Bettembourg and Rodange, survival will already be a historic feat – and with some conscious team-building, they can build a solid footing in the top flight for years to come.

Zac Hadji continues to excel against former team

Upon his return to the Grand Duchy following three mixed seasons in Switzerland, Zachary Hadji announced his ambitions to return to the professional world with a fruitful campaign in Strassen.

Topping his older brother Samir was always going to be an arduous task given UNA’s incredible depth in attack and Samir’s own fine form for Dudelange. However, Zac now has six goals and six assists in 14 appearances at his new destination.

While his performances have earned acclaim since new manager Stefano Bensi’s arrival, there is still some way to go for Hadji to emulate his previous success at Fola, where he recorded 33 goals and 8 assists en route to the Luxembourgish Golden Boot and a league title at Stade Émile Mayrisch (playing alongside Bensi, among others).

His previous employers still play an important role in the striker’s career: when he first arrived at Strassen in September, he made his league debut in Esch-sur-Alzette, the venue where his trophy-laden adventure had kicked off.

Now in his best form, Hadji had amassed four goal contributions in his last four appearances, in the space of 305 minutes in total. It was a tough ask to keep his hot streak going, but he did just that against the Eschers on Saturday, opening the scoring from the penalty spot only three minutes in. The early breakthrough was crucial, given the low block deployed by Fola, who seemed intent on taking a draw from the starting whistle.

When Hadji ultimately left the pitch before the start of the second half, the job was partly done. A further two goals from Jimmy Teixeira and substitute Matheus ensured there would be no late collapse this time around. With this win, Strassen are in fourth place, behind Swift Hesper on goal difference.

What next?

The Luxembourgish Cup continues with mid-week fixtures, bringing together the last 16 teams left standing. Jeunesse Esch meet Niederkorn in a clash of two high-profile, but underachieving teams, while the only fourth-division team, Minerva Lëntgen, could be able to continue their fairytale run with a win against fellow amateur FC Belval Belvaux.