“Verschueren wanted to disinherit me”
Back to the mid-90s. Tall, left-handed, midfielder and defender, Cerclist Claeys is one of the greatest talents in Belgian football. On the eve of the Belgian Cup final Club Bruges – Cercle (“2-1, but with VAR it would have been 2-2”), he is the surprise of Wilfried Van Moer in the selection of the Devils for the friendly match in Italy and he is on the shelves of Anderlecht and Club Bruges. “I had spoken with Club Bruges, then Jef Jurion invited me to the Saint-Guidon restaurant with Michel Verschueren and Constant Vanden Stock, who really wanted me. I gave them my word for a five-year contract. The next day, Wim Kooiman (ex-Anderlecht and back at Cercle) said to me in the shower: 'Feyenoord will call you'. I had already been to Kuip, I was under the spell of this club. And I signed in Rotterdam. But then this news had to be announced to Verschueren. Furious, he called me all kinds of names. Before hanging up, he said to me: 'If you were my son, I would disinherit you!' I had broken my word and I regretted it.”
”Destroyed, but I beat Zidane with Feyenoord”
After scoring the first goal with the Devils in Italy (2-2), Claeys is experiencing more downs than ups at Feyenoord. “It was a famous team, with Koeman, van Bronkhorst and Larsson. And Don Leo Beenhakker as coach. Feyenoord – Grêmio at fanday allowed me to confront reality: the level was much higher than that of Cercle! Wim van Hanegem, icon of the club, immediately destroyed me in the media. He hadn't thought about what this could do to me as a human being. I still played high-level matches, including the 90 minutes in our 2-0 victory against Zidane and Deschamps' Juve. I came into the game before the break against Manchester United (defeat 1-3), where I found myself facing Beckham. I still have Poborsky and Cole's jerseys. But after two seasons, I wanted to leave. I played little and was therefore no longer included in Devils. And there was interest. Gerets wanted me at Club Brugge, but there was also… Anderlecht.”
“De Boeck knew my salary”
Indeed, Verschueren returns to the charge. “He forgave me for my infidelity in 1996. I remember the setting: the big folders were piled up on his desk. We quickly reached an agreement. Antoine Vanhove, the director of Bruges, did not want to overbid: he took the Serbian Lesnjak. Arie Haan, the Anderlecht coach, wanted me as a central defender, alongside Staelens. During a training session before the season, I shared a room with Glen De Boeck. He knew exactly how much I earned. And he told me how impressive he found me in the midfield. He wasn't stupid, Glen. He was afraid that I would take his place in defense (laughs). You had to have a big ego to succeed at Anderlecht, which I didn't have. In the locker room, I found myself between Stoica and Scifo. Enzo was class. And Alin is the greatest talent I have come across. But sometimes he would say to me: 'Geoff, I'm a little bad. I can't train.' Crasson was the champion of imitation: of Verschueren, of Dockx, of Weber. Do you know that I am still in contact with Zetterberg via Facebook?”
””Even booed when I was warming up”
In Osijek, in the European Cup, Claeys makes his first blunder. “Of course, I scored 2-1. But I caused a stupid penalty and we lost 3-1 (Anderlecht qualified in the return after a 2-0).” In the 34th minute of Anderlecht – Charleroi (1-1), Haan replaces him with Stoica. “Then, I played badly as a left-back in the Cup at Denderleeuw, where we were eliminated. The straw that broke the camel's back was an Anderlecht – Standard. I too easily let Remacle center towards Mbo Mpenza on the 0-1. And after a too-short back pass to De Wilde, the whole stadium turned against me. I collapsed. I was paralyzed. Dockx and Vercauteren tried to bench me in the following matches, but even that didn't please the crowd. People were already whistling at me when I got up to warm up. Then Frankie explained to me that he couldn't select me anymore. He was right. But in the meantime, the fans had broken me as a man. I had to come and watch the matches from the stands, but I was afraid of the fans. The 3rd goalkeeper De Coninck and Ole-Martin Aarst tried to cheer me up and I spoke about it with Staelens during our trips between Bruges and Anderlecht. But in reality, I felt very alone. It was a relief to be able to leave Anderlecht and go on loan to Aalst. Of course I was angry with the supporters. But I don't blame them anymore. I would happily agree to go see a match at Parc Astrid, my first as a spectator since I left in 1999.”
“Big depression in Lierse, but I kept quiet”
In Aalst, Claeys initially rediscovered the pleasure of football. “Coach Hulshoff even let me choose what position I wanted to play. Strangely, I always had good matches at Anderlecht, whether with Lierse or then with Mouscron. I wanted to show the fans that I wasn't that bad. I remember a 0-0 between Anderlecht and Mouscron, I had put Aruna in my pocket. Vercauteren, who was T2, came to congratulate me. That’s great class on his part.” Mentally, however, Claeys is going from bad to worse. “During the winter training with Lierse in Türkiye, I was no longer progressing. Whereas I was always among the top three when we did physical training. Blood tests revealed nothing abnormal. My dad knew what I had and it was confirmed during a visit to a psychiatrist: I had severe depression. In normal life, an employee takes a year's sick leave. But in football, we can't afford that. Only the club doctor knew. Medication allowed me to finish the season. But I didn't tell anyone about it. I felt embarrassed.”
“Alcohol and depression: a cocktail that destroyed me”
Rebelote in Mouscron, where his trainer Hugo Broos nevertheless takes care of him. “He sent me to a sports psychologist. Sometimes he put me on the bench to protect me. I was hoping I wouldn’t have to go up to the game.” Claeys totally slips up. He brushes workouts and starts drinking. Drunk, he causes a car accident and comes to blows with the police. “It's unacceptable what I did. Alcohol combined with depression forms a destructive cocktail. When I went out at night, I had no limits. I spent entire days in bed. I got up to go train when I had the courage. And sometimes, I knew how to motivate myself for a match. In the end, I performed quite well, despite my reprehensible lifestyle. Without the protection of certain people, who knew that I was not a bad guy, this would not have been possible. I wasn't addicted to alcohol, but I used it to forget and escape the truth. After my career, alcohol continued to ravage my life. It is partly the basis of my divorce. For a year and a half, I haven't been drinking at all. I have a non-alcoholic beer. And very rarely, I enjoy a small glass of wine.”
“Dark thoughts, but I loved living too much”
The end of his career, in Melbourne in 2006, did not put an end to his mental problems. “Especially during my divorce, I admit to having had dark thoughts. I advise you to read the book by German goalkeeper Robert Enke (Editor's note: the Hannover goalkeeper committed suicide in 2009). But for me, I always had this little glimmer of hope that told me: I love life too much. I questioned myself and found a certain balance in life. I dare to say no to people and I take care of myself. I'm still in therapy. What makes me happy is taking care of my sons Novak who is 14 years old and named after Djokovic and Lucás, 12 years old, who plays for KV Ostend. They are big supporters of the Cercle, we will be at the stadium on Sunday. The week I don't have them, I get slapped. When I get home, there is no one there. But I manage. I also left football, which is a world of ego. I was T2 in Knokke, now I am going to follow training to accompany and support young people with problems. I find satisfaction in being able to serve others. For me, it’s more important than winning a football match…”
