This week, the Belgian Cup final will showcase a historic first: an all-Brussels showdown between Anderlecht and Union St. Gilloise. For Anderlecht, it's more than just a city rivalry—it's a shot at redemption after falling short in their last two cup finals. Last season, they were edged out by Club Brugge, and four years ago, under the guidance of current Bayern Munich boss Vincent Kompany, they lost to Gent.

That 2022 final marked a bittersweet moment for Kompany, who had returned to his boyhood club to lead them through a challenging rebuild. Anderlecht was shedding big contracts and betting on youth development, and Kompany—widely praised for overachieving with the squad—steered them to a third-place league finish behind champions Club Brugge and city rivals Union. The cup run, however, felt like a fairytale waiting to happen.

Anderlecht's path to the final looked smooth on paper. After entering the competition in the sixth round, they demolished RAAL 7-1 away. But the next test—a Pro League clash with RFC Seraing—was anything but easy. The match ended 3-3, forcing a nerve-wracking penalty shootout that Kompany's men narrowly won 4-3. In the quarterfinals, Kortrijk came to Brussels, only to be undone by Christian Kouamé, the Fiorentina loanee who netted 13 goals that season, including two in that match. The semifinals pitted Anderlecht against Eupen, a side known for cup grit. A 2-2 draw in the first leg set the stage for a tense second leg in Brussels, where Anderlecht capitalized on home support with a 3-1 win, advancing 5-3 on aggregate.

Standing between Kompany and his first trophy as Anderlecht head coach was Hein Vanhaezebrouck's Gent—a team that had carved a more daunting path to the final, dispatching Belisia, Lommel, Standard Liège, and Club Brugge along the way. It was a clash of styles and stories, with Kompany's underdog narrative colliding against Gent's momentum. For Anderlecht, it was a chance to rewrite recent history; for Kompany, it was the ultimate farewell dance.