Harambee Stars’ fast rising defender Joseph Okumu got his preparations for the new Belgian top flight season off to a bad start as he ended up on the losing side against Club Brugge in the 2022 Belgian Super Cup match played on Sunday evening. In the match staged at the Jan Breydel Stadium which acted as a curtain raiser to the 2022/2023 campaign set to kick off next weekend, Okumu and his KAA Gent went down to a hard fought 1-0 defeat against Brugge.Supercup 𝗪𝗜𝗡𝗡𝗘𝗥𝗦! 🏆 We Are Bruges! 🖤💙 #CluGnt pic.twitter.com/1aE6eoqhpy— Club Brugge KV (@ClubBrugge) July 17, 2022 In the low scoring match, Andreas Skov Olsen’s 39th minute strike was all that made the difference as Brugge resolutely defended the slender advantage to see out the victory that secured the cup.Okumu hadade a return to the side after missing a couple of preseason games owing to a suspected injury but even his presence in the side was not enough to help hos team overcome the league champions.Number 𝟏𝟕. 🏆 #Supercup pic.twitter.com/N2u7A1Mp0b— Club Brugge KV (@ClubBrugge) July 17, 2022 “I saw a Gent that showed commitment and mentality and forced opportunities. Despite some important absences in our squad, we were sometimes better than our opponent and that makes me happy. All in all, there is a satisfied coach here,” Hein Vanhaezebrouck, Gent head coach said despite the loss.Following the result, Gent, who finished last season in 7th place, will look to put the Super Cup disappointment behind them when they take on Standard Liege in their league opener on Friday.”We are not hiding it. We don’t want to miss our competition start. Friday we go to Standard. It will be a difficult match but we are keen to finish it well,” he said.Geen Supercup, wel een happy HVH 🔵⚪REACTIE | https://t.co/FLIkz5XwAc#clugnt #supercup pic.twitter.com/nFq5SKKVav— KAA Gent (@KAAGent) July 17, 2022 The Super Cup is a club competition played as a single match between the Belgian First Division A champions and the Belgian Cup winners.Gent qualified to take part in the competition after defeating powerhouse Anderlecht 4-3 on post-match penalties in the Belgian Cup following a barren stalemate both in normal and extra time. Brugge on the other hand were the Belgian champions in the 2021/2022 campaign.
