Victor Wegnez is one of Belgium’s most talented hockey players. Notwithstanding his young age, he already won the Belgian title with his team, and was crowned European (Antwerp, 2019) and World Champion (India, 2018) with the national team!
5 minutes with...
Victor Wegnez
What’s your first memory of being a Standardfan?
Well, my first memory didn’t take place in the stadium, nor in front of a television, but simply listening to the radio. I would have been about 6-7y old and I remember listening to Thierry Luthers commenting our games. And then there’s obviously one memory which comes back quite often, and that’s the goal scored by Sinan Bolat against A.Z. Alkmaar.
Why is our club so unique (in Belgium)?
To really understand Standard you simply have to attend one of the games. Every time an opponent enters Sclessin, they realise our club is different. The passion from the fans is unique in Belgium, and they really give the players the strength to go above and beyond. It’s all about a workers’ mentality that our fans adore. Obviously we appreciate quality football as well, but we love to see our players battle for every ball. And although results haven’t always gone our way over the past years, the fans have always stayed true to their colors. You can probably compare us well with French outfit Olympique de Marseille. They too have a great atmosphere and their fans are equally crazy about their team.
What was the first game you attended at Sclessin?
My first game at Sclessin was a classico!!! I went to see Standard v Anderlecht in 2004. It must have been November/December time frame cause it was getting cold (November 10th). Standard won 1:0 (goal by Sérgio Conceição) and apparently it was 3 years ago when we last won as my friends told me I was bringing the team good fortune.
Who was your favorite player?
Because I’m still rather young, I haven’t seen legends such as Preud’homme and Gerets. However I was lucky to be in the stands when a new generation won two titles in a row. I have to say that players like Witsel, Defour and Jovanovic were simply outstanding. It is just a shame that some of these players came back, after a stint abroad, to play for arch rivals Anderlecht. For us as fans, this is not acceptable, especially as they all represented what we love at Standard. Although he was not in the same league as an Axel Witsel, I still have fond memories of Oguchi Onyewu. The American was so imposing physically.
What does your golden eleven look like?
Goalie: Sinan Bolat
Defense: Mohamed Sarr – Oguchi Onyewu – Marcos Camozzato
Midfield: Axel Witsel – Steven Defour – Sérgio Conceição – Marouane Fellaini
Strikers: Milan Jovanovic – Dieumerci Mbokani – Mehdi Carcela