Coachless Hesperange beaten by F91

Having stayed away from the dugout for Swift's meeting with Jeunesse Esch last month, it was obvious there was some tension behind the scenes surrounding Hakim Menaï. Fast forward one week, and he has been removed from his position, just like his stand-in for that Jeunesse game, Ebrahim Bouazzati.
 
It soon became clear that it was a selection-related issue causing friction between the two staff members. Namely, the playing time given to Bouazzati’s son, Yanis. The young midfielder often found himself on the bench after a turbulent summer window with plenty of arrivals, but his father disagreed with the head coach’s decisions.
 
The altercation left chairperson Fernand Laroche with no other option than a double sacking. As a consequence, the club was left with no designated manager to conduct training and lead the team at matches. The nominated makeshift boss for the time being appears to be fitness coach Brahim Raggui, who has no previous managing experience.
 
After a hectic week and with a challenging match-up away from home against F91 Dudelange, expectations were admittedly low for this rag-tag Hesper side. They did weather the storm early on, threatening several times on the counter, and getting as far as a disallowed goal in the opening three minutes.
 
F91 were the more balanced side on the day, but Swift kept running at the hosts' defence with pace, forcing several saves from goalkeeper Marlon N’Guessan. Even he was helpless in the 41st minute though, when Kino Delorge fouled Gaël Nsombi inside the box, resulting in a penalty calmly converted by Mamadou Kaloga. The goal came only three minutes after Dudelange’s opener, headed in by defender Adrien Pianelli.
 
A draw would have been a very respectable – and realistic – outcome for Hesper, if not for the final 15 minutes and Ivan Englaro's introduction. The homegrown midfielder was incisive from his first touch upon being subbed on, and immediately assisted Evan Rotundo for Dudelange's second.
 
As Hesper desperately searched for a late equaliser or another chaotic moment inside the opponents' box, it was F91 striker Dinho who put the final nail in the coffin with a header in stoppage time, sealing a two-goal home win.
 
This marked Hesperange's third defeat in a row, albeit with a kinder schedule ahead of them. In their next four matches, they will face US Hostert twice (first in the cup, then in the league), besides Racing Union still adapting to their new manager and an inconsistent US Mondorf side.
 
As for Dudelange, the victory meant they successfully held on to their podium place amid sustained pressure from newly-promoted Atert Bissen, who have racked up eight wins and a draw in their last nine outings in all competitions.

Sébastien Grandjean back in Luxembourg

The Belgian technician has returned to the Grand Duchy in a formal capacity for the fifth time in his career, after three stints at Jeunesse Esch, and one spell at F91 Dudelange and Fola Esch each, with a league title in 2021 – his most notable achievement in the country.
 
Since his departure following Fola’s restructuring in 2022, he has coached Francs Borains and Standard Liège's reserve teams in the Belgian second tier, but never ventured too far from the Luxembourgish name. His name frequently popped up in discussions over various managerial positions over the years. At one point, he was one of Luc Holtz’s possible successors in the summer, before the FLF ultimately decided to approach Jeff Strasser.
 
In the last three weeks, Grandjean could regularly be spotted in the stands at Racing Union games, home and away, while pressure mounted around the future of Yannick Kakoko following a disappointing start to the season. Elimination from the UEFA Conference League was followed up by a run of two wins in ten games, pushing RFCUL to the brink of the relegation zone.
 
Having seen four of the team's most prolific players return to the professional world, Kakoko needed a different approach to last season's successful tactic. However, he has failed to adapt to the circumstances, and after a harrowing 5-1 loss to reigning champions Differdange on Wednesday, he was relieved of his duties by the board.
 
The new boss had less than half a week to prepare for his first test, at home against Käerjéng on Sunday afternoon. Despite the short notice, he made sure to leave his own mark on the team's formation, tweaking it to his preferred 3-4-1-2 instead of the four-man defence his predecessor favoured.
 
In the end, the setup left much to be desired. Racing failed to dominate the game apart from short patches, and were frequently outplayed by a struggling UNK team sitting second from bottom. The Sky Blues had most of the ball for the entire game but failed to create chances or control the proceedings. Käerjéng was the more dangerous side, although their lack of precision in the final third prevented them from snatching a crucial three points from Stade Achille Hammerel.
 
The merger team took the lead before the half-hour mark, with a penalty from Jesaja Herrmann after an accidental handball in the Käerjéng box. This was enough to give Racing the lead they needed in order to rely on their possession game, limiting the opponents to as few chances as possible in a somewhat tepid and eventless affair.
 
The guests' chances were decimated even further by a second yellow card for Tim Ewert with half an hour to go. Somehow, UNK still managed to equalise in the final stages against all odds, thanks to a goal from Joël Bayilu.
 
After a week that yielded three points against Niederkorn and Differdange (and still cost Kakoko his job), this draw might feel disappointing to fans of the club from the City. For now, Racing Union are only outside of the bottom four on goal difference.
 
However, Grandjean inherited a team facing glaring issues in numerous aspects of their game. Vulnerable defence, isolated attackers and ill-discipline all tormented Racing this season under Kakoko. Fixing these issues will be a gradual process. Although RFCUL’s best chances of securing a European place now lie in the domestic cup, the new coach will still have to try and iron out these issues one by one.
 
A more organised defensive shape and a midfield capable of controlling the ball is already half the job. The challenge now is to build on these early foundations and get the strikers firing.

Hostert finally end seven-game winless run

US Hostert defeated Mondorf 2-1 to collect their first three points since 23 August, when they defeated Jeunesse Canach by the same scoreline.
 
Marc Thomé’s side had to put up with losing top scorer and Luxembourg international Kenan Avdusinović in the summer, the team’s primary attacking outlet. They brought in several players to share the goalscoring responsibilities, but have so far had limited success. Their leaky defence from last season has also not been fixed, with Hostert conceding the second-most goals in the league after last-placed Mamer 32.
 
The seven-game streak included a particularly ugly result, a disastrous 7-1 loss to newly-promoted Atert Bissen. They also conceded four against UNA Strassen, and failed to beat lowly Käerjéng, too.
 
Their miserable run has finally come to an end on Sunday, when they were helped by the circumstances at Stade Jos Becker. A badly waterlogged pitch gave way to a hectic, unpredictable 90 minutes of football, against US Mondorf, whose preferred style of play is more refined and less direct. Hostert, on the other hand, thrives on long balls and runs in behind, which were easier to execute on the muddy surface.
 
In a scrappy game, the first goal was a sight to behold: Donat Ahmeti hit the back of the net from a bicycle kick after Loris Bernardy's cross to give Hostert the lead early in the second half.
 
The last ten minutes ended up bringing more excitement, drama and opportunities than the rest of the game combined. Chaaban Issaka scored his first-ever league goal for Mondorf to equalise from Yann Godart’s assist, before continuing to push to turn the game around. In the 86th minute, it was Hostert's French forward Diogo Fernandes who tipped the scales in the hosts' favour.
 
Fernandes has never scored over ten goals in a season, but now has six in 11 appearances this term. His goal contributions tend to correspond with his team's fortunes, as only two of his eight goal contributions have come in games that ended in a loss.
 
This victory allows Hostert to crawl out of the relegation fight for a week, sitting in 11th place having jumped above Racing Luxembourg and Union Titus Pétange to a comfortable mid-table position.
 
Despite losing their most influential player (and several starters), the gamble has paid off for Hostert so far. As long as there are four worse teams after the curtain falls on the season, Thomé and his staff can be satisfied with their efforts this year.

Around the pitches

Progrès Niederkorn dropped important points again, as they failed to find Rodange's net on Friday, in the opening fixture of Matchday 11. Despite scoring only five times all season, Rodange's defence held on this time to keep the team above the direct relegation zone, while Niederkorn find themselves four points away from third place, despite their own attacking woes.
 
Atert Bissen now boast the best attack in the league, scoring another four times against rock-bottom side Mamer. Captain Adriel took the lead early on, before Khalid Abi Ramzi scored his ninth goal in 12 games. He chipped in with an assist afterwards, for Roman Ferber's third. Mamer's captain Mickaël Jager scored a consolation goal before Joel Rodrigues added a fourth and propelled Bissen to within three points of second place.
 
The most chaotic match of the day was played out by Jeunesse Canach and UNA Strassen. The guests took advantage of two unforced errors by Canach defenders, before the home side got back into the game thanks to some brilliant interplay between attackers Nicolau and Maurice Deville. Matheus Souza missed a penalty before completing his hat-trick in stoppage time, but the best was yet to come: Nicolau scored his second on the day to salvage a point for Canach in the 98th minute.
 
Differdange suffocated Union Titus Pétange at home on Sunday, but had little to show for it. The only goal of the game, like many this season, came from a set-piece situation: Juan Bedouret headed on a ball towards Kévin d’Anzico, who scored from a tap-in. Union held on and kept their shape throughout most of the game, but produced little in attack. FCD continue their run for the title, and have now extended their lead to five points, with a game in hand.
 
Jeunesse Esch have racked up their third consecutive win, keeping a clean sheet in their victory against Victoria Rosport. In a tight, cagey game, it was the Old Lady who created the more opportunities, but the young attackers lacked the clinical edge until the last 20 minutes, when Leon Elshan scored the winner from Emmanuel Lapierre’s cross. Thanks to this victory, Jeunesse Esch are now joint-sixth, level on points with Mondorf.

What next?

Differdange will host Rodange in a previously postponed game in the BGL Ligue on Wednesday evening, before the Luxembourgish Cup commences with the Round of 32 this Sunday, with all 16 matches kicking off at 16:00.