"Moriyasu to Belgium?" Reversal in one day after Japan's surprise report... Belgian club officially announces different manager

*This content was translated by AI.View Original

Contrary to rumors of a move to Belgium for Hajime Moriyasu (58), manager of the Japanese national football team, the club in question has actually appointed a different manager. Sint-Truiden, which had been linked with Manager Moriyasu, officially announced its new head coach.

Sint-Truiden, a top-flight Belgian professional football club, announced on its official website on the 6th (Korean time) that "Belgian-born Manager Jonas De Roeck will take over as the new head coach of the first division team."

Previously, Manager Moriyasu, who leads the Japanese national team, was mentioned as a candidate for Sint-Truiden's next head coach. Specific reports even emerged stating that his appointment had been pre-arranged.

Japan's Nikkan Gendai reported on the 5th that "Manager Moriyasu will step down from his position as manager of the Japanese national team at the end of November and take up the post of head coach at Sint-Truiden in Belgium's top division."

However, an unexpected announcement came just one day later. Sint-Truiden appointed Manager De Roeck, not Moriyasu, as its new head coach.

Tateishi Takayuki, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Sint-Truiden, stated, "Manager De Roeck has been highly evaluated since his time at Sint-Truiden in 2017-2018. Through continued exchanges afterward, I felt that he had grown even further as a coach."

He added, "Manager De Roeck also has a deep understanding of our club. After several conversations, I became convinced that he is a manager who can realize our philosophy on the pitch," expressing his expectation to "raise the league ranking as soon as possible with him."

Belgian-born Manager De Roeck has experience leading Sint-Truiden in the 2017-2018 season. Since then, he has served as head coach at Anderlecht and manager of Westerlo and Antwerp. He led Westerlo to promotion to the top division and recently directed Club Brugge's youth team and Club NXT.

Sint-Truiden is recording poor results this season, including a five-game losing streak in the league. Consequently, they dismissed Manager Frederik De Meyer on the 2nd and handed the reins to Manager De Roeck.

However, what Japanese media previously reported was the theory that Manager Moriyasu had been pre-arranged for appointment next season. Therefore, it cannot be definitively stated that the possibility of Manager Moriyasu's future appointment has completely disappeared solely due to this appointment of Manager De Roeck.

The future of Manager Moriyasu remains uncertain. In particular, the issue of his position has become more complicated with the postponement of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Asian Cup schedule.

The Asian Cup, originally scheduled to be held in Saudi Arabia in January 2027, was postponed to open in December of the same year due to regional political situations and safety issues, among other reasons.

Manager Moriyasu had signed a short-term contract for approximately six months until the end of the Asian Cup after the 2026 North America World Cup. However, variables regarding the contract have arisen with the postponement of the Asian Cup by about one year.

Some Japanese media are also raising the possibility that Manager Moriyasu may step down from leading the national team within this year.

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*This content was translated by AI.View Original