Royal Antwerp have received a major boost ahead of their Europa League Round of 32 tie with Rangers after signing Maxime Le Marchand on loan from Fulham [Royal Antwerp FC Twitter].
The Great Old have had a strange season to date.
They finished runners-up in Europa League Group J and are currently second in the Belgian Pro League table.
However, it’s been far from plain sailing, as they have lost eight times in the league and gone through a managerial change.
New boss, Franky Vercauteren, was appointed in early January and results have been more consistent in recent times. However, the 64-year-old made it clear to the club’s board that the playing squad needed to be boosted in the winter window if they expected success over the second half of the season [Daily Record].
Many clubs across Europe are short of the required funds for transfer fees right now, but Antwerp have received a big boost a fortnight out from the first leg of their Round of 32 tie with Rangers after pulling off the loan signing of Le Marchand on deadline day.
The 6ft 1″ Frenchman, who can play at centre-back or left-back, is an experienced operator with over 300 senior games under his belt, most of which coming in France with Le Havre and Nice.
He’s been at Fulham since 2018 and made two appearances in the Premier League earlier this season but subsequently fell down the pecking order and has joined Antwerp in search of regular playing time.
The Belgian club only conceded five goals in six Europa League group stage contests but their defence has been a problem in the Pro League with 34 goals shipped in just 25 matches so far this season.
Le Marchand’s signing adds extra quality in that area, though, and he should have plenty of time to settle in ahead of the Gers’ visit.
Rangers pulled off some signings of their own on deadline day and on Wednesday they made several adjustments to their Europa League player list.
