Anderlecht survive scare as Bertaccini strikes in stoppage time to beat 10-man La Louvière 2-1

Anderlecht dominate the first half without reward

Anderlecht opened their Pro League season at Lotto Park under new head coach Vitor Bruno, taking charge of his first championship match on the Anderlecht bench. The Brussels side controlled the first half almost entirely, dictating possession and pinning La Louvière deep in their own half for long stretches. The one-way traffic, however, produced no goals. The Mauves forgot to translate their territorial command into scoring, leaving the score level at 0-0 and storing up frustration for what would become a far more uncomfortable evening than the opening 45 minutes suggested. The visitors, by contrast, reached halftime having absorbed considerable pressure without offering much in attack, a pattern that would change sharply after the interval.

La Louvière strike first against the run of play

Edward Still's side returned from the dressing room with considerably sharper intentions and began to pose problems the home defence had not faced before the break. Their opening goal arrived against the overall flow of the match. After an unfortunate intervention by Pétrot, newcomer Mustapha Isah capitalized fully on the opportunity to put La Louvière ahead at 0-1, a lead their first-half performance had scarcely warranted. The visitors could not enjoy the advantage for long. Barely five minutes later, Joel Ito received his second yellow card, reducing the Wolves to ten men for the remaining half-hour and handing Anderlecht a numerical edge they would spend the rest of the match trying to exploit. The Mauves had suffered and even been led, but the dismissal gave them the opening to reverse the trend.

Nga Kana equalizes, then the wall holds firm

Anderlecht went all out in attack and quickly reaped the reward. After a strong infiltration by Maamar, the unmarked Joshua Nga Kana, a 17-year-old, scored his first goal for the club to level the match at 1-1. From that point, the home side pressed relentlessly, but a combination of goalkeeper Peano and the Hennuyère defensive wall kept Anderlecht at bay for a long stretch. The Wolves gave everything on the pitch to preserve the result, throwing body and soul into the defensive effort. Chance after chance for the Mauves went unrewarded, and the prospect of dropping points on the opening day grew increasingly real for the purple and white, as the match entered its final phase with the score still locked at 1-1.

Bertaccini delivers in the 92nd minute

The decisive moment finally came in the 92nd minute through substitute Adriano Bertaccini. The forward was positioned at the right spot inside the penalty area to convert a blocked shot from Pétrot from close range, fixing the final score at 2-1. The late winner spared Anderlecht what would have been a damaging points loss after a dominant but difficult evening, and gave Vitor Bruno a winning start to life in the Pro League. Anderlecht collected their first three points of the season, avoiding a false start to the campaign. La Louvière, who had defended with everything for the final half-hour a player short, ultimately left Lotto Park with nothing to show for a spirited performance that nearly earned them an unexpected result on the road.