Hugo Broos has been a key part of Belgian football since the early 1970s. As he enters his fifth decade as a manager, we take a deeper look to uncover some of the most impressive stats and figures from his football career spanning more than half a century.
First years
Broos grew up in a small town called Humbeek, which has a population of just a few thousand. Despite coming through the academy at his hometown club, when Belgian giants Anderlecht came knocking, it was an easy choice for the then 18-year-old.
Anderlecht Royal
He quickly established himself as one of the first names on the Anderlecht teamsheet, and his calm and consistent presence in the Anderlecht defence rubbed off on the rest of the team.
During Hugo’s time at Anderlecht, he became club captain and won 10 trophies, including two European Super Cups and a UEFA Cup. He played for the national team throughout this time, perhaps best known for their performance at the 1986 World Cup, where they finished fourth.
After retiring, he returned to Anderlecht as manager, where he won the Belgian Coach of the Year award twice in three seasons. While some of the more prominent European honours eluded him during his international career, Broos’ approach and coaching ability helped to spark a golden age of Belgian football, during which Roberto Martinez came close to lifting silverware with the national team on several occasions.
As the Euros approached, Belgium were not considered one of the tournament’s favourites. However, stranger things have happened, and as the Euros have shown us in the past, underdogs can emerge from nowhere to be crowned the continent’s top team.
Denmark achieved this feat in 1992, although many of their players also proved to be elite players. A better example is Greece at Euro 2004. This relatively unknown squad beat some of the giants of European football on their way to lifting the trophy at incredible odds of 150/1.
Hugo Broos – Management Style and Statistics
We imagine Hugo has his sights set on managing his national team at some point, as he is doing very well with the South African national team. While South Africa are not considered one of the top teams on the continent, his third-place finish with them at last year’s AFCON is testament to his ability to manage and get the best out of a squad.
You only have to look at the attitude of the South African players and fans towards Hugo. While he can often say attention-grabbing things and sometimes appear quite nervous in press conferences, the proof is in the pudding, as they are just a penalty shootout away from the final.
Broos’s early days in management were undoubtedly his most successful. He achieved win rates above 50% at Genk and Anderlecht and took the team he played nearly 350 times into the Champions League as a coach in 2004. He struggled to achieve the same success throughout the 2010s, bouncing around a number of teams in Greece, Algeria and Turkey before finding form and managing the South African national team.
What will Hugo do next?
Broos is currently experiencing an Indian summer in his career. After a difficult period and managing six clubs in five countries in eight years, his third place with South Africa at the AFCON has put him back on the radar of management.
He has no plans to leave his position at the moment, but if he can continue to put in solid results with Bafana Bafana, he could be coaching at a higher level of European competition again before retiring.
Summary
Hugo is a testament to the quality of Belgian football. While his name may not be the first to come to mind when we think of Belgian football figures, he is a huge part of their footballing legacy. He showed resilience as a coach and a player and continued to produce results wherever he managed.
Who knows how much longer he can play football at the age of seventy? He seems keen and wants to continue his tenure as SA boss and as he is still getting the best out of the team, we don’t expect him to be leaving anytime soon.
