5 minutes with...

Maxime Monfort

Maxime Monfort is one of Belgium’s strongest allround cyclists. He has shown strong results in the mountains as well as in time trials, where we he was crowned Belgian champion in 2009. He started his career in 2004 and is part of the Lotto-Soudal team since 2014. Maxime is a true Ardennais, and also a big fan of the Reds. In 2018 he was invited to kick off a game.

What was the first game you attended at Sclessin? And what do you remember?

I don’t really remember the very first game, but I must have been 8-10 years old. In those days I went to the game with my uncle who lived in Liège. He also had access to the lounge where players stopped by. You can probably imagine how impressed I was seeing my idols up close!

Which player impressed you most?

I’ll probably surprise many of you, but I have really fond memories of Aurelio Vidmar. He’s probably not the most gifted player in Standard’s long history, but what a goal scorer!

What would your golden eleven look like?

I’ll probably go for the team that impressed me most when I was young: Gilbert Bodart – Régis Genaux, Mircea Rednic, Dinga, Philippe Léonard – Alain Bettagno, Guy Hellers, Marc Wilmots, Gunther Schepens – Michael Goossens, Aurelio Vidmar.

Any favorite coach or manager?

Michel Preud’homme, version 1.0, and now version 2.0.

We often talk about the magical atmosphere at Sclessin? Why is the stadium so unique in Belgium?

I won’t be giving an original answer, but the atmosphere in the stadium is always grand, and it can have a determining impact on the final result. Let me also add how I impressed I was when I was asked to kick off the game in January 2018. It was totally unexpected and remains a wonderful memory.

Thanks Maxime!