At the beginning of November, four Genk players will board a plane to Qatar, where the FIFA U17 World Cup takes place from 3 to 27 November. With this, KRC Genk once again confirms its status as one of the leading academies in Belgium.
The selected players from the KRC Genk Talent Academy are:
• Loïc Alvarez Fernandez
• Ali Camara
• August De Wannemacker
• Lucca Brughmans
This representation proves that KRC Genk’s youth academy continues to operate at the highest level, consistently producing talents ready to showcase themselves on the biggest international youth stages. That was also evident from the recent success of our national U17 team — at the last European Championship, De Wannemacker and his teammates reached the semi-finals, where they narrowly lost to France.
“The success of this generation reflects the overall strength of Belgian youth football. We are proud to give our talents this unique experience. A youth World Cup teaches them to handle specific types of pressure and helps them grow into more complete footballers,” says Director of Youth & Development Steven De Pauw.
With Ali Camara, August De Wannemacker and Lucca Brughmans, three of the selected players were still in the starting line-up for Jong Genk last weekend. Due to their absence, Jong Genk may postpone its Matchday 11 fixture in the Challenger Pro League against RSCA Futures to a later date. A decision on this will be made in the coming days.
Goalkeeper Lucca Brughmans, captain and standout performer at the recent U17 EURO, is also expected to travel to Qatar. His participation, however, depends on the recovery of Tobias Lawal, who sustained an injury ahead of the away match against Rangers FC. The Austrian’s situation is being monitored day by day.
KRC Genk wishes all selected players the very best of luck in this unique international challenge.