Belgian Pro League Preview 2026/2027: Cercle Brugge | OneFootball

Cercle Brugge going into this season hoping to avoid the mistakes of the past two campaigns. After finishing in the bottom four twice, there are hopes that the club can turns things around under Danish head coach Lars Friis. He has a few new players to work with, but it does not appear that the side have done much to rectify their struggles up front. Perhaps Cercle Brugge are hoping for some internal growth from the strikers already on the books, or are still working on some new signings. They will once again be one of the youngest sides going into the new season.

Transfers in: Lazare Amani (Kifisia FC), Gaetan Coucke (Sampdoria)

Transfers out: Warleson (Botafogo), Nils De Wilde (Aalst), Beni Mpanzu (FC Dordrecht), Flavio Nazinho (Monaco)

Key player: Lazare Amani

He may be one of the few new signings, but the former Union St Gilloise man could be crucial for Cercle Brugge this season. In many ways, he is the replacement for Leandro Lopes who left a few seasons ago and was never really replaced. High energy and tough tackling at his best, if Amani can find his best form, he really could be a driving force for a young Cercle Brugge team in midfield.

Young player to watch: Emmanuel Kakou

Cercle Brugge have struggled at the back, but the emergence of Emmanuel Kakou last season was promising. It is hard to pick just one young player at Cercle Brugge given how young they are, with the 21-year-old Kakou actually one of the older players in the squad. Yet he is still a relative youngster compared to the rest of the league. If the 21-year-old can really kick on this season, there is no reason why he can’t attract interest from other clubs and maybe force his way into the Cote d’Ivoire side for the 2027 AFCON. That would be quite an achievement and feels a long way off, but the Belgian Pro League has been a provider of players for Les Elefants at the 2026 World Cup.

GBeNeFN | Ben Jackson