Union St Gilloise came back from 1-0 down with just 10 men to draw 1-1 with Antwerp at the weekend, denying their opponents the title. This opened the door for Genk, who beat Club Brugge 3-1 thanks to a brace from Ghanaian winger Joseph Paintsil to close the gap on the top two.
After Vincent Janssen had given Antwerp the lead midway through the first half, Antwerp were on course for their first title since 1957. When Union midfielder Senne Lynen was shown a straight red card during the second half, Antwerp fans were beginning to dream. However, with just over 10 minutes to go, substitute Cameron Puertas shot was deflected off Arthur Vermeeren and passed the helpless Jean Butez. This meant that Union and Antwerp remain locked on the same points.
Genk knew that they had to beat Club Brugge if they wanted to have any chance of winning the title on the final day. Paintsil gave them a first half lead, but a header from Hans Vanaken brought Club Brugge back into the game. However, with time running down, central midfielder Patrik Hrošovský struck to give Genk the lead. Five minutes later their three points were safe when Paintsil made it 3-1.
Genk will now face Antwerp on the final day of the season, needing another win to give themselves a chance. Should they beat Antwerp, Union are then in pole position should they beat Club Brugge. The Belgian title race will now be decided on the final day of the season on Sunday 4th June.
